What if you had to die to save the world?
by krisrat
Summary: If you had to choose between your life as you know it, and helping to save the world, what would you choose? Ranma has to choose between his budding relationships with his fiancees and a higher calling. Ranma/SM Crossover. M Rating to be safe.
1. Prologue

What if you had to die to save the world?

A Ranma ½ Sailor Moon Crossover

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own the characters or situations of Sailor Moon or Ranma ½. I am also not Japanese, and so I may not be totally correct in some of my geography or in my Japanese phrase usage. I beg indulgence for any mistakes, this is unbeta'ed for the moment, thought I am taking applications . This is the first in a series of stories in this universe, and this one is subject to revisions and re-writes. I am just looking for feedback at the moment.

One would think that the telephone that Ono Tofu stared at was a live rattlesnake rather than just a piece of technology, given the trepidation he regarded it with. It wasn't so much that he didn't want to speak to the person he was calling, rather, that he was worried that… SHE would answer. And despite the leaps and bounds he had made in his therapy and emotional control, he wasn't sure he was ready to put this to his newfound control to the test yet. Had circumstances not required, Tofu would have gladly put this off for a few years yet. But the fact was, he needed to make this call, the life of one of his patients may depend on it. So he slowly picked the handset up off the cradle, and dialed a number he had long since committed to memory. As he waited for the call to be connected, and half-praying that the correct person would answer, he allowed his mind to wander a moment to what lead up to this phone call.

He had left Nerima district some 18 months before, the chaos building in the area and his own emotional issues making him seek out some much needed rest and recuperation. Not to say that he allowed himself to drift, though. He had been invited by an old friend to set up shop at a hospital in the Juuban district, taking patients for his shiatsu and moxibustion practice at an office in the hospital and working as an attending physician in the emergency room several nights a week. The hospital stayed rather busy due to the attacks of various monsters, but given the things Tofu had seen in Nerima, this was almost routine for him. His friend and fellow physician Mizuno Reiko was one of the senior doctors at the hospital, and with her help he had a very successful practice. His tendencies towards the more esoteric arts of medicine kept him in demand, but never overworked, as such practice was common in the Juuban area. He had never personally encountered any of the Sailor Senshi himself, but found himself constantly grateful for their work, which kept him from seeing too many fatalities in the attacks. Recently, however, the attacks had tapered off, so while he still had many regulars, he did not have any new patients come in for his services, unless they were referred.

Such was the case file on his desk right now. The young girl, 12 years old, was listed as being very easily fatigued, suffering from fainting spells and occasional hallucinations. The condition seemed to worsen just following monster attacks, so she was referred to him by Reiko, who was the mother of one of the girl's friends, Ami. Tofu had met Mizuno Ami a few times, and often wondered about some of the company the girl kept, as the girls she came in with didn't seem to be the type of people the shy girl would seem to be drawn to. But Tomoe Hotaru, his patient, was a friend, and Reiko and Ami both seemed quite concerned about her, so Tofu agreed to take the case. The symptoms described did not seem to even scratch the surface of what Tofu found, however. As near as he could tell, and he was not an expert, there was something fundamentally wrong with the girl's ki, but for the life of him he could not determine what it was. He needed help, from someone with an understanding of ki well beyond his. And the list of people who possessed such abilities was extremely short. It was only because of his contacts back home that it was even as long as it was. He had considered and dismissed both the Amazon elder Ku Lon, and Happosai. Both were very able, certainly, but he did not dare to unleash the old pervert on an area protected by young girls in short skirts, and he wanted to avoid the entanglements asking a favor of an Amazon would come with.

Saotome Ranma, though, was a definite possibility. Point of fact, Ranma was the most amazing ki adept he had ever encountered. He (or she, depending on the weather, Tofu thought with a smirk) was a good kid, rough around the edges to be sure, but had a heart of gold and a caring streak a mile wide. No, Ranma wasn't the problem. The problem was the troubles that would accompany Ranma, were he to come to the hospital. And those problems, a group of fiancées, rivals, and other crazies, would cause damage that would rival a youma attack, and, while he doubted they would last 30 seconds against the Sailor Senshi, he knew the girls would be very hesitant to do battle with a group of normal, albeit powerful, humans. He wracked his brain, but could not come up with anyone who would bring as much to the table as the teenager would. So he steeled himself, and resolved to call the young ki-adept.

Which brought him back to the present, and his call to the Tendo Dojo. He hoped it would be Ranma that answered, or, barring him, Nabiki, as they would be the only two he could trust to be as discreet as he required, though he knew discretion from the middle Tendo sister did not always come cheap.

"Yo, Tendo Dojo, Ranma speaking"

'Oh thank you Kami-sama' Tofu thought to himself. "Hello Ranma-kun"

"Doc! S'been awhile! How's it goin'?"

"I'm doing well, Ranma, thank you. Are you alone?"

"Yeah. Pops and old man Tendo are out drinkin' an' Akane and her sisters are out at some play or sumthin."

"Good. Ranma, I need a favor. One that requires as much discretion as you can provide."

Ranma's voice got abit more serious. "You know I'll do what I can doc. What's up?"

"Not over the phone. I need you to meet me at… the Tomobiki Train station as soon as you can, and plan to be gone much of the day, and I need you to come alone and not be followed. Can you do that?"

Silence on the other end of the line for a bit, then, "Yeah… Yeah I can do it. Tomorrow ok?"

"Tomorrow would be fine. What time can you get there?"

"I'll need some time to lose any tails. Say… 9:30?"

"Fine Ranma. I'll see you at Tomobiki tomorrow."

"'Kay. See ya doc!"

Tofu hung up the phone, and thought a moment. He had told Ranma to meet him practically completely across Tokyo from his office, but couldn't risk being tailed back to his office, nor did he wish to let anyone know where he was, even Ranma, should he refuse to help. He supposed he was treating this abit too much like some spy movie, but knew Ranma's luck well enough to know that being accidentally spotted was likely, and Tofu did NOT need to deal with the chaos of Nerima on top of the problems of Juuban district. He made a note on his charts, then picked up the phone again to make another call.

"Moshi Moshi, Meiou Setsuna speaking."

"Meiou-san, this is Dr. Tofu. Is this a bad time?"

"Not at all Tofu-sensei. What can I do for you."

"I have found someone that may be able to help me with Hotaru's treatment, and I need your permission to speak with…" Tofu paused just a moment, wondering which gender Ranma would be meeting his patient as "Them about the case, and bring them to meet with you both at your next appointment."

"Of course, Doctor. I trust your judgment in this matter."

"Thank you Meiou-san. I want to warn you that they are very young, but are one of the most advanced in the field that I have ever encountered. "

"I'm sure they are, Doctor. We are scheduled to meet you next Wednesday, correct?"

"Yes, we are. I will most likely be bring them along then"

"I will see you then. Have a good Day, Doctor."

"You as well, Meiou-san."

Tofu hung up the phone again, and for just a moment stared at it, wondering about the tone of the woman's voice. She was usually unflappable, but when he mentioned bringing in someone else, she almost seemed, anxious. He supposed it was just the situation itself that was troubling her. He filed his paperwork for the day, and went home, mentally preparing himself for everything that could go wrong the following morning.

He needn't have worried too much.

Normally speaking, Ranma would be less trusting about someone wanting to meet him privately, and not be followed, but this was Dr. Tofu, a man that Ranma often regarded as being the most honorable person he had ever met. So he went up to his room to start planning on just how to get across Tokyo without being followed, discovered, or kidnapped by the prince of a small island nation and taken to his castle as his wife/concubine/loveslave/French maid. (Which can, does, and… has… happened.)

Ranma left the following morning at 5, leaving a note about a training trip he was going on, and started the clock. He went to the train station and bought a ticked to Chiba prefecture. 45 minutes into the trip he jumped to the roof of the train and hopped to another at a junction crossing, and from there, began to really begin the process of loosing his tails.

4 and a half hours, 8 gender changes, and 12 disguises later, Ranma walked into the Tomobiki train station, under his personal variation of the Umisenken, and looked around for the familiar face of the doctor. Spotting him sitting at a bench nearby, he dropped the thieves cloak and strolled over to the doctor and took a seat next to him.

"Heya Doc."

"Hello Ranma. I'm sorry to ask this, but I have to. Were you followed?"

Ranma snorted. "Yup. Lost Shampoo and Ucch… Ukyo in Chiba, Nabiki in Hokkaido, and Ryoga… well, Ryoga's probably half-way to Spain by now."

Tofu couldn't help but laugh at that answer, but there was something in Ranma's tone, especially when he spoke of his fiancées, that seemed to be abit strained.

"Everything ok, Ranma?"

Ranma stared at him a long moment, then shook his head. "Don't worry 'bout it, doc. Nuthin you could do anyways. What didja need my help with?"

Tofu sighed, realizing that answers would not be forthcoming any time soon. "Alright, straight to business then. Ranma, I have a patient that I've hit a block with, and I could use your help with her."

The boy looked at him a moment, then looked embarrassed and pulled at his pigtail as he answered, "I'd liketa help, doc, but I don't know nuthin about medicine or anything like that."

"No, Ranma. What I need is… Ranma, there is something very wrong with this girl's ki, and you've forgotten more about ki than I could ever hope to know."

"Doc, c'mon… I mean, yeah I know some, but…"

"Ranma… you can read aura's right? Not just battle aura?"

"Well, yea, but…"

"And you can project your ki without attacking?"

"Yea, like if I need ta move fast or Soul of ice, or.."

"Ranma… those are not common gifts. And to be honest, I can't do that without some serious preparation. I suspect that your help would be invaluable."

"Huh?"

"I can use your help."

"Oh. 'Kay."

Tofu snickered. "So want something to eat?"

"Always"

The two talked for awhile about the girl's situation, and made plans for Ranma to meet at Tofu's office at Juuban General the following week for Hotaru's appointment. Tofu carefully suggested that the girl may be more comfortable if Ranma showed came in his girl from, and Ranma agreed, surprising Tofu somewhat at how comfortable he seemed with the idea. Plans made and directions given, Ranma thanked the doctor for the food, and headed back to the trains. Tofu watched him leave, again wondering at the changes Ranma had gone through, and worried at the tension the boy had hanging over his head. Tofu had a feeling the next few days would prove fairly interesting.

Author's Notes: Okay, this is the first of approximately five chapters, epilogue included. I am looking for a beta to work this one over with me, as I have plans to expand this story, and have at least one sequel and several side stories planned. Please let me know what you think. And yes, this is a Ranma-in-a-fuku fic. I plan to release one chapter a week, with the next chapter out in the next couple of days. All chapters have been written, but are unedited.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: If you recognize it, I don't own it. Ranma and Sailor Moon are properties of their creators. Author's notes will follow at the end of the chapter, and just to clarify, Ranma will be referred to by whatever gender pronoun is appropriate for the form he/she is in. I've read a lot of fics that continually use 'he' when Ranma is a girl, which, I think, only confuses most readers. I understand that it's done to heighten the feeling of gender confusion, but it can get difficult to read. And yes, I said weekly postings, I just already had these both ready. Next chapter will come out next weekend.

The following Wednesday morning Tofu was sitting in his office when the door opened to admit a pretty young red-head in a candy-striper's uniform. She looked familiar to Tofu, though he couldn't put his finger on it. "Hello miss, can I help you?"

The red-head giggled, "Tofu-sensei, I'm hurt. Don't you recognize me?"

The words, and the very attitude were totally foreign, but the voice, was 100 percent… "Ranma?"

"Hiya doc!" The red-head chirped.

"My, you look very…." He paused, looking for the right word… "Convincing." Perhaps cute, or even beautiful would have been a better word, but Tofu was well aware that there was a young man underneath the female exterior. But he had to admit, it was only because he knew the person in front of him. Gone was the trademark pigtail, instead, the girl in front of him wore her hair back in a loose ponytail, a pair of discreet glasses perched on her nose gave her the air of a slightly shy and studious young woman.

"Thank, Doc. I figured… I mean… I thought that your patient would be more comfortable being examined by another... umm… a girl rather than a guy."

"Another?"

Ranma blushed, (Making Tofu mentally stumble) "Don't read too far into this, Doctor. It's just to keep up appearances."

'Yeah, right. I really can't wait to hear this story.' Tofu thought, but only responded with, "Of course Ranma." He cast the thoughts aside, and nodded to the door to the examination rooms. "She will be here shortly, and I have a patient waiting for me. Do you want to look over her records before you come in."

"Umm… yes please. I borrowed some of Kasumi's" Ranma winced, but was relieved the doctor's glasses did not fog over at the woman's name "medical books to look over before I came in, just to get an idea of what to say to sound like I knew what I was doing."

"That's… surprising, I must admit."

"I might not show it, Doc" Ranma said in a somewhat cold tone, "But I'm not an idiot."

Tofu winced, "I didn't mean that, Ranma. I'm sorry it came out like that."

She sighed, "I know. I didn't mean to snap. I'm sorry." Without another word, she took the offered folder and sat down in a nearby chair and began to look over the records, trying to make sense of the medical terminology and comparing the doctor's notes with her own experience with ki. Tofu watched her a moment, then went to the exam rooms to tend to his patients.

A while later, Ranma lost track of time, the doctor returned. "Ranma… Our patient is here." Ranma nodded, and put the file aside, then accompanied the doctor to an examination room. As soon as the door opened, Ranma was practically blown away by the feeling of…. pure power, coming from the woman and young girl in the room, power that dwarfed even Saffron. She unconsciously moved into a battle stance, much to Tofu's shock.

The older of the two in the room, the one with long dark green hair, turned an amber-eyed gaze to Ranma, and smiled slightly, but sadly. "It's all right, Miss. We mean no harm to you at all, and promise that we are not here to fight." She turned to Tofu, "And doctor… any doubts I had regarding your young assistant have just been answered." The woman stood, the girl with her following suit, and both bowed to Ranma. "My name is Meiou Setsuna, and this is Tomoe Hotaru, my ward."

Ranma bowed back, somewhat weakly, relaxing her stance a bit. "Saotome Ranma… Sorry about this."

"Of course, Saotome-san, think nothing of it."

After the introductions, the four talked about Hotaru's condition briefly, Ranma forming initial impressions based on just surface observations, until the time came to do a more thorough examination.

"Hotaru-chan, it would be best if I can examine you in just your… umm… undergarments." Ranma said, blushing heavily, to Tofu and Setsuna's amusement (though both were amused for different reasons). Hotaru, far too used to medical examinations, just agreed, and stepped behind a screen to remove her outer clothes, leaving her just in her bra and panties. Ranma fought down her embarrassment as much as possible, and brought her ki up to her eyes, trying to get a reading of the girl. As she watched the girl's ki moving around her body, what she saw shocked her, though she managed to keep the emotion off of her face.

About 10 minutes later, Ranma told the girl that she could dress, and asked to speak to the doctor a moment to get confirmation on something. The two went to Tofu's office, where Ranma slumped into a chair.

"Ranma?"

"Doc… there's something really wrong with that girl's ki."

"What do you mean?"

"It's like… umm… You know what ki is, right? I mean in general?"

"Of course, it's basically the energy the body uses to power it, and heal itself."

"Yeah. Usually when you use ki, it gets replen… umm… replenished. Like filling up a bucket after you've emptied it, or more like a well in the rain... Yeah! That's a good way to think of it. Everyone's got a set amount of ki, like in a well. Some people can draw more up, like using a bigger bucket. But if you use too much, you have to wait for it to fill back up."

"I'm with you so far."

"Ok. So… You can get more ki from eating, or resting. Or just from being outside and in nature, from the earth itself. That's why you always feel more rested spending time outside."

"Ranma… what are you getting at?"

"Hotaru… she can't refill her ki. Its like, something is blocking it from being refilled."

"What?"

"I'm not saying this right." Ranma said, a frown marring her features. She chewed her bottom lip for a moment, making Tofu again start at just how much like a girl Ranma was acting. Slowly, she began to speak again, trying to verbalize the concept. "Ok, so a well can fill back up when it rains, like from groundwater and stuff, right?"

"Yes…"

"Her ki's more like a pool, or something. The normal taps that people have to pull ki from around them or to get ki from eating and resting… aren't there."

"So, if the ki gets used up…" Tofu began, trailing off in horror.

"Then it won't fill it back up naturally, and I don't know if it can be filled any other way. If it runs out, WHEN it runs out… she dies."

"How long?" Tofu asked, a growing sense of dread filling him. He never liked dealing with terminal patients, and knew that Ranma was not one to exaggerate. If she said it was trouble, then it was trouble.

Ranma sighed, looking frustrated. "I don't know, Doc. She doesn't look very active, and I don't think she does the Art or anything… Months, maybe. A couple years at most? I'd have to check her again after a couple days and see how much it changes."

Tofu nodded, knowing that Ranma was doing the best she could. "Alright. I'm going to go talk to her and set up a followup for a week from now, and we'll work on getting you back out here. In the meantime, do you need to get back soon?"

"No. I've already told the school I was not coming in today, so there's not point in me going back."

"Alright. I'll be awhile longer, but I think we need to talk. Can you meet me back here at 3:30?"

"Yes, Doc." Ranma said, still distracted.

"Do you need money for lunch?"

"No thanks. I've got enough."

"All right. I'll see you in a few hours. If you tell the cafeteria you're with my practice they'll give you a better discount on your lunch"

"Yeah, ok" Ranma said, heading out the door, her mind obviously miles away.

As Tofu watched her walk away, he reflected a moment on just how powerful the young man… woman for the moment, was. The kind of examination that Ranma did on the girl was well beyond anything he was capable of. He just hated that the Ranma's first exposure to that particular skill was on this particular patient. He shook his head, putting back on what he called his 'doctor face' and then steeled himself for what was bound to be an unpleasant conversation.

Setsuna and Hotaru took the news that there may be something wrong with Hotaru's life energy fairly well, though Tofu did not mention Ranma's somewhat chilling prognosis, as there was little that could be stated with any certainty yet. They agreed to come in again the following week, and allow Ranma to examine Hotaru again. Tofu finished up his patient roster for the day, and then went back into his office to wait for Ranma.

When she didn't show at 3:30, he began to worry. At 3:50, he decided to go looking for her. He walked to the main reception desk and asked one of the doctors nearby if they had seen her.

"Oh, that cute little redhead? Yeah, she was in the children's wing last I saw." The doctor responded. "Is she your new assistant?"

"She's helping me out on a case, yes"

"Well if you don't want to keep her to yourself, tell her we'd love her to work for us. She's been helping out all over the hospital today."

Tofu nodded, a brow raised, and headed towards the children's area. He found Ranma seated next to a little girl being treated for cancer, several other children gathered around her as she read to them from a book. All the children were engrossed, especially when Ranma gave the different characters funny voices. Tofu let her finish the little storybook, and then cleared his throat. Ranma looked up quickly, then over at the clock looking sheepish.

"Sorry, sensei. I lost track of time." She hugged the little girl in the bed, then addressed the others. "Sorry kids, I need to go for now."  
"Aww!! But we like how you tell stories!" One little boy responded. Another one, slightly older, asked, "Please come back sometime, I want you to be my girlfriend!"

If Tofu had been shocked by Ranma's behavior before, her response practically floored him, "That's very sweet of you, Jiro-chan, but I think you'd be better off finding a girl your own age when you get a little older. I bet they'll all want to be your girlfriends, since you're so cute!"

The boy blushed and ducked his head, making Ranma giggle. She stood, ruffled his hair and said her goodbyes, making her way back to a very bemused Tofu.

"Making boyfriends, Ranma-kun?" He asked as they walked back to the office. Ranma snickered and responded "Aw, let the kids dream. Besides, I know I'm irressistable!" She posed a moment, in an exaggerated way, making Tofu laugh. The two got back to his office, and she sat down across from him at his desk.

"I hear you've been helping out around the hospital today, Ranma."

"Yeah, I hope its ok. I got kinda bored, and I saw that they needed a hand with some things."

"What all did you do?" Tofu asked, bemused.

"Well, I left your office, and I was sitting down on a bench in the hall when a whole bunch of people started running to a room. One them called out for me to come with them, that someone was 'coding' or something. I think they thought I worked here. But I went with them, and this guy was on the floor of his room, thrashing around and stuff. They were trying to help him but he wouldn't stay still so I hit one of his paralysis points, then got them bandages and stuff when they asked for it." She smiled, "It was kinda nice, knowing I was being helpful. They got him cleaned up and I reversed the paralysis on him. A couple of the nurses asked me who I was and I told them I was helping you for the day. So they showed me around and I helped out when I could. Then they needed me to keep an eye on this kids while they had to rush one of the little ones to surgery, so I started telling them stories. All the nurses were really nice, and they asked me if I was gonna be coming back, so I told them yes." She paused, and looked over abit nervous, "Is that ok??

"Its fine, Ranma. In fact, I wanted to make you an offer. You did very well with the kids in there, and with Hotaru this morning, and one of the doctors I spoke to when I was looking for you spoke very highly of your help today. Would you like to take a position as my apprentice in a more permanent way?"

"Umm…" Ranma thought for a moment, unconsciously playing with a loose strand of hair next to her ear. "I think I'd like to, Doc. But what about school and stuff?"

"I think we can work something out letting you attend a juku after work here in Juuban, and have you go to Furinkan on days you aren't working. I believe they allow students to do that, especially to pursue apprenticeships."

"Yeah, I think Ukyo mentioned something like that. And I doubt pineapple-head Kuno would object to me leaving campus during the week."

"Alright, Ranma, we'll start the paperwork to get you hear on a more permanent basis. But I have a few conditions."

Ranma got abit suspicious. "Like what?"

"First, I don't want you to bring anyone from Nerima with you, or even tell them where specifically you are working. Especially your girls."

Her expression darkened. "They're not my girls, doc. But I see your point. What else?"

"Over the weekend, do you think you could arrange a way to live in this area, or find somewhere to stay?"

"Yeah, my momma has a place in Juuban. I bet she'd love to have me stay with her."

"What about your curse? There's a lot of hot water used in the hospital."

Ranma thought a moment. "I used waterproof soap when I came here today, and I've got a couple boxes of it. It should do for now"

"Alright. Lastly…. Talk to me, Ranma. There is something very serious going on with you, and I don't think its at all healthy, and you're acting quite differently than you did yesterday"

She blew out a breath, and settled back. "Alright, Doc. I owe that much to you if I'm going to be working with you." She began to tell him about all the things he had missed out on since he'd left Nerima. She talked about the battles with enemies and friends alike, about the ki attack training, and about the kidnappings and fights. She teared up when she started talking about Jusendo and the failed wedding 6 months before, then sniffled abit and finished. "Doc…. If you had asked me a year ago if I was in love with Akane, or any of the others, I probably would have denied it, but not really meant it. But now…" she trailed off and got a distant look on her face. "Nothing's changed. It's the same fight, every day. I'm just a prize to them anymore. Even Nabiki and Kasumi can see it. I don't know what to do."

"And the way you're acting now…?" Tofu prodded gently.

Ranma sniffled, then smiled sadly. "A couple months ago, my mother pulled me aside and asked me how complete my change was when I got wet. She wanted to know if I had a per… umm…" she blushed deeply, "A period, and how my body responded. We figured out that it was almost a total change, and then she started asking about how I felt about things. I though at first she was gonna start waving that stupid katana around, but she told me that she wanted me happy, and that I seemed to be fighting the curse too much. So she had me spend the day as a girl, doing things with her like a daughter would. We went to her house in Juuban and spend the day together. She said that they way I talk is ok for a boy, but when I'm a girl, and dressing like one, I need to speak better." She smirked abit, "It ain't perfect yet, but I think I'm getting better at it. We've done it a few times since then, and its kinda nice to be able to let go. When I'm a girl, things seem more peaceful. I don't want to stay this way all the time, especially since when I get married I'd rather be the husband and father, but… it's a nice change for me."

Tofu nodded. "I've always maintained that you needed to accept that you were a girl sometimes, and I'm glad to see you doing so. Then when you work here with me and stay in the area, why don't you do so as a girl?"

"I think I will, doc. My momma would love it, I'm sure." She smiled fondly, remembering her last outing as her mother's daughter, getting dinner together.

The two sat and got some paperwork finished to start the process of Ranma getting a work permit, then Tofu asked for Ranma to call her mother so he could talk to her about it. Tofu listened to the one-sided conversation for a moment, then took the receiver from Ranma's proffered hand.

"Hello Saotome-san"

"Doctor Tofu, how are you?"

"I'm doing quite well, actually. Your…. Umm…" Tofu stumbled over the words for a moment, till Ranma whispered "Daughter's fine, I'm a girl right now, Doc" He nodded, then addressed the phone again. "Your daughter spent the day at my office in the hospital, helping me and some of the others with some patients, and she seemed quite good at it. I wanted to ask your permission to offer her an apprenticeship with me."

Nodoka was silent a moment, then responded, "I think that is a fine idea, Doctor, but I'd like to speak to you further about it. Why don't you and Ranma come over here when you are finished, and we'll have dinner and chat. Tell Ranma she is welcome to spend the night if she would like."

"Thank you for the invitation, I'd love to join you for dinner. We'll be leaving the hospital shortly."

"Of course, Doctor. May I speak to my daughter again a moment."

Tofu handed Ranma the phone, and heard her stammer out something about it 'not being like that'. Between the blush and the rapid head shaking, Tofu had a feeling he didn't want to know. Ranma, now almost as red in the face as her hair, hung up the phone as soon as 'good bye' had left her mouth, and turned to the doctor.  
"I think my mother enjoys teasing me."

Tofu laughed. "All mothers do, Ranma-kun. Its just what they do."

Ranma shot him a sour looked, then rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm learning that. Well I need to call the Tendos and let them know I'm not coming home tonight." Tofu nodded, and Ranma picked up the phone again and dialed.

"Tendo Dojo." Came a lazy sort of drawl over the phone.

"Hey Nabiki, its Ranma." Ranma mentally steeled herself, and Tofu could almost see the change just in posture. The sunny tomboy he had been dealing with most of the day was gone, replaced by a somewhat world weary boy in girl's form.

"Ranma-kun. How's my favorite martial artist doing today?"

Ranma rolled his eyes, "I'm still not telling you where I am." He smirked. "How was Hokkaido?"

"You've gotten good at losing me, Ranma, I must admit I'm impressed. Though you had better hope for your sake that there wasn't another girl with you today, or I might make you sorry."

"Gonna take some pictures of it and spead 'em around, Nabiki?"

"Why Ranma, I'm hurt that you think I have some hidden agenda, I'm just looking out for you"

"You ALWAYS got an angle, Nabiki."

The girl paused, "I suppose I do. What do you need, Saotome?"

"I'm gonna spend the night with my momma at her place. I jus' wanted you ta let Kasumi know I wouldn't be home for dinner tonight so not ta wait for me."

"I'll tell her. When will you be back?" The girl asked in a not-so-innocent voice.

"Tommorrow sometime. Don't tell anyone I'm here, ok?"

"3000 yen."

Ranma practically growled at the phone, her tone becoming cold. "I'm done paying you off, Nabiki."

"Then I guess I'll just have to sell your location. A girl's got to make a living somehow."

"You send those idiots to my mother's house and I swear to every Kami above I'll take it out of your hide." Ranma responded, her tone deadly serious.

Nabiki swallowed. The problem with blackmail was it only worked if your victim cared about it, and it seemed that Ranma was done caring. This wasn't a level Nabiki was ready to take the game to. "R… Ranma?"

"I mean it, Nabiki. Your loose lips destroyed my mother's house once, and ruined my wedding. Your SISTER'S wedding, dammit. I've had enough. You keep those damn floozies and my idiot rivals away from here."

A very quiet voice responded with, "Its gotten really bad, hasn't it, Ranma-kun?"

"Yes it has, Nabiki." Ranma replied, her voice tight with anger.

"If anyone finds you, I swear on my mother's grave I didn't tell them." Nabiki paused a moment, realizing that something had changed, and the worries that she and Kasumi had quietly discussed may not have been that far in the future. "But… Ranma, do you need someone to talk to? No charge, I promise!"

He heard only sincerity in her voice, which gave him pause. "Why are you offering?"

She was silent for a long moment. In her room she stared at his picture, wondering why things had gotten so out of control, and forced herself to own up to some things. "When you two first showed up, I was upset that we'd have to spend more money to keep you both fed and housed. Then… it turned into a game, almost. You've got to admit, some parts of your life almost seem like something from a movie or anime. But… I didn't realize how bad it really was getting. You'd pay me like always, like everyone does. You'd laugh when the girls would do silly things, and you'd still try to be friends with Ryoga, and now you're insulting people that you've never said a cross word to, and threatening me, which you've never done." She wasn't crying, which Ranma was grateful for, but she could tell the girl had been hit in the head by reality all of a sudden. "I don't know how fast I can change old habits Ranma. But I AM sorry its gone on this long."

Ranma wasn't familiar with the term olive branch, but she extended one anyway. "You know where my mother's house is, and I'll let you and Kasumi know when I'll be staying there. Come find me there sometime. I'll be spending more time with her thanks to a job I might be getting. We'll talk it out."

"Alright. Any messages you want me to give?"

"Tell Kasumi thanks for putting up with me, and that I'm sorry I'm missing dinner."

"… Anything else."

Ranma knew what she was fishing for, but couldn't bring herself to care. "No." And he hung up.

Across town, in Nerima, Nabiki stared at the disconnected phone in her hand for a long time. The wind had just changed, and to be honest, she no longer had any idea how things were going to go. She sighed and replaced the handset in its cradle, and turned to her older sister. "Kasumi, Ranma won't be coming home tonight. He's at his mother's house."

"He's got one of those sluts with him, doesn't he!" Came the voice of her younger sister from the stairway "Where is it at? I'm gonna go pound some sense into that pervert!"

'I wonder if Akane fell into the category of floozy or rival' Nabiki wondered to herself. "Sorry, Akane. That information is not for sale."

"The hell its not! You'd sell your own family out for 10 yen, why should I think this is different. How much?"

Nabiki blinked. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. I bet you spread your legs if someone offers you the money. My pervert fiancée is probably sleeping with one of his girls and I want to know where he is. I've got a large mallet with his name on it!"

"AKANE!" Kasumi yelled, which shut everyone up. Kasumi never raised her voice. "How DARE you accuse your sister of that!"

"She…. You know she would!"

Nabiki had never been hurt by words before, until now. She could feel tears pooling in her eyes at the accusation. Sure she'd been alittle unscrupulous… alright, a lot unscrupulous, but she'd never done that. And her own sister thinks…

"I know no such thing, Tendo Akane. I suggest you not make such accusations again." Kasumi was livid. She had put up with a great deal in her home, but accusing Nabiki of being a harlot was more than enough for her.

"Whatever!" The girl responded, and stormed up the stairs. Their father, and Ranma's father, had been watching the exchange silently, and then slipped out of the house, headed for sake and some quiet, no doubt. Nabiki sat down hard in a chair at the table, her eyes blank.

"Are you all right, little sister?"

"When…. When did things get this bad?"

"Its been building up for awhile, I think. I try to not let it phase me, but that was over the line." Kasumi stroked her little sisters hair, "And what about you? What changed your tune so quickly?"

"Ranma did. Remember when we talked about when he'd finally had enough?" Kasumi nodded, "I think that time is now. He's not taking it anymore. And I'm not going to push him. I think the game needs to change, or we're all going to lose."

"This has been going on since the Saotomes arrived, Nabiki. To be honest, I'm surprised its gone on this long." The two were silent for a long time, each lost in her own thoughts, until Nabiki remembered a message she was supposed to pass along.

"Ranma told me to thank you for putting up with him, and to let you know to not hold dinner." She glanced at the door., and came to a decision. "I'm going to go see him tonight"

Kasumi smiled abit. "Tell him I said hello. Here, let me give you something to take to him." She bundled up a few cookies in a bag and gave them to Nabiki, then paused. "Nabiki…." She began slowly, in a quiet voice, "Family honor says he has to marry a Tendo."

"I know, elder sister."

"It doesn't say it has to be Akane."

"What are you saying? Do YOU want him?" 'Do I?" She wondered to herself.

Kasumi sighed. "One of us has to marry him. Maybe it would make things easier on him if we just said that it could be any one of us again. If nothing else, maybe it will bring him and Akane together by taking some of the stress away."

"I'll talk to him about it tonight."

"Alright. You need to go if you're going to catch a train. I'll call Auntie Nodoka and let her know you're coming.

When Nabik arrived at Saotome Nodoka's house in Juuban, she was surprised at the size of the home. It was, by her estimation, a good 6 rooms, and even had a dojo off to one side. Again, she wondered at not only the money that Nodoka seemed to have gotten out of nowhere, but also at why Ranma and Genma were not asked to come home. Opening the gate, she was greeted by a smiling Doctor Tofu, and Nabiki quickly realized what sort of job Ranma would be getting. She bowed in return, and slipped off her shoes in the entryway. Entering the dining room, Nabiki was brought up short as she found Ranma setting the table, in a dress, apron, and ponytail. And thanks to the lines on the dress, she was also certain that there was a bra under there. "Ranma?"

"Hello Nabiki. Please, both of you sit down, Mom and I are just finishing dinner."

"Thank you, Ranma." Tofu said, speaking up over the stuttering Nabiki. "You look very nice."

"Thank you, Tofu-sensei. Nabiki, I promise I'll explain."

The girl could just nod mutely.

The dinner was excellent, though the conversation was dominated by Nodoka and Tofu as they discussed the logistics of Ranma attending school and working for Doctor Tofu. Nabiki was startled to learn that he would be doing so, and as a girl no less. She started to fidget abit as questions piled up in her mind.

"Girls," Nodoka said as they finished eating, "Why don't you both go upstairs to talk. Nabiki, if you'd like to stay the night, Ranma can show you where to sleep. If not, she will escort you home."

"I… I think I'd rather stay, Auntie. I can catch an early train for school tomorrow."

"Very well. Ranma, I expect you to do me the courtesy of changing into a boy if you and Nabiki fool around." She ignored the simultaneous faceplant on the table, "While I don't mind you exploring your girl side, I do prefer to get grandchildren first." Seemingly oblivious to the warding gestures her daughter and Nabiki were presenting, and the shocked look on Tofu's face, she began to clear the table, humming a little tune that undoubtedly revolved around grandchildren as she did so.

"Momma…. You're embarrassing me. Again." Ranma muttered weakly. "Come on, Nabiki. I'll show you the guest room."

Tofu watched the two mortified girls leave the room, and turned to a now smirking Nodoka Saotome.

"Oh don't give me that look, Doctor. I know full well that those two will not do anything. But the thought needed to be planted in their mind."

"What do you mean?"

She offered him a cup of tea, then escorted him to the living room. "Kasumi called me earlier. Apparently the dynamics of my son's relationships are changing rather strongly, and she felt that the Tendo/Saotome agreement would be better served if all three sisters were considered, rather than focusing solely on Akane. Ranma has always been abit uncomfortable around Nabiki, but if she is to be considered as a potential fiancée, then the ice needed to be broken."

Tofu blinked a moment at that, fighting down the initial urge to protest Kasumi's involvement in that statement. He had left suddenly, with no explanation, and left no way to be contacted. He wasn't entirely sure he would even want to get involved with the Tendo girl, as even still he had problems not seeing her as the 10 year old girl with a crush he had first met. 'Or the 14 year old who tried to seduce me' he thought wryly, then cleared his mind of such things, acutely aware that his glasses were about to start fogging over "Actually, that was related to what I wanted to talk to you about. Are you aware of the extent of Ranma's… current issues?"

"I know my son is having a hard time of things, yes."

"Nodoka…. I don't think you are quite aware of just how hard things have been on your son. He shared a great deal with me today, that I think you need to be made aware of. Let me tell you about the neko-ken"

A few districts away, a certain panda sneezed and was overcome by a feeling of extreme dread.

Upstairs, a blushing Ranma led Nabiki to the guestroom, where Nabiki gestured for Ranma to sit down next to her.

"Ranma-kun… I owe you an apology. More than that, really, I owe you a debt of honor. I'm sorry for the way I've treated you."

"Nabiki.. I understand some of it. You're the only one keeping your family afloat, financially, and as long as you don't let it get out of hand I don't mind the betting pools or pictures too much. But you put several people in danger."

"I know, Ranma, I know. Again, I am very sorry. And I'm supposed to ask you something."

"Okay…"

"Kasumi and I were talking earlier, and we know things have been difficult with your engagement to Akane. We know you're working hard at it, but neither of us are sure if it would work with the pressure you're both under. I'd…. we'd…. like to offer to open the engagement back up, to include all three of us as potential fiancées, rather than just one of us."

"You can't be serious"

"I am completely serious, Ranma."

"So you just want a chance to rent me out again?"

Nabiki winced, and cursed the tears starting to form. This had been an emotional day for her. But she knew that Ranma didn't handle crying girls well, and the air needed to be cleared between them. "Sorry doesn't even start to cut it. Ranma-kun… When my mother died, we were all still little girls. Kasumi was just 10. I was 8 and Akane was 7. My father…" she smiled slightly, "He used to be such a great man. And he loved my mother very much. When she died, he started drinking. Things weren't like they are now, though. Kasumi wasn't old enough to be the woman of the house, and we started loosing students." She looked at him seriously for a long moment. "I want your word that nothing I say goes farther than the two of us."

Ranma was wondering why Nabiki was telling her this story, but suspected that there was a really good reason. And she wasn't the type to use things like this against people, "I swear, Nabiki. Word of a martial artist."

She nodded, then continued. "We used to have a woman named Mika that came over to watch us girls and keep up the house. She was an older lady, whose husband had passed on a few years before. She was also very traditional." Nabiki sighed, "She wanted Kasumi to take over the house, but oneechan didn't want to at first. So she started spending a long time away from home, and getting into trouble. I don't know what happened, but one day when she was 14 she… changed. She locked herself in her room for a week, and when she came out, suddenly she was exactly like Mika wanted her to be." Nabiki paused, "Akane was a tomboy, just like she is now. And she didn't listen to Mika at all. The first time Mika slapped her, my father just turned and walked away." She sighed, "I found out some time later that Mika was dating a much younger man, who was married. I followed her and took her picture on the dates. Then I told her that if she hurt Akane again, I'd release the pictures. It worked. Mika stopped hitting Akane, and just ignored her. I felt powerful… like I had done something special. And Akane, just stopped growing up. Mika died, leaving Kasumi to run the house, me to run the money, and Akane with no idea of how to deal with growing up." The tears were coming now, but she didn't give into them. "Our family has been through a great deal, Ranma, and we refused to change things. If we just stayed the people we had always been, then we had a constant, something to hold on to, in a world that kept on throwing things at us. But I realized, and so did Kasumi, that if things didn't change now, that we may lose you for good. And neither of us want that. So please, consider this for us"

Ranma stared at her a long moment, putting pieces of a puzzle together in her mind. "I got two problems with it, then, that I need to let you know. First, I don't know if I want to pick up two more official fiancées, and two… I don't want to put either you or Kasumi in danger. Shampoo and Ukyo are getting more wreckless. Its only a matter of time before they hurt someone., and you two are not trained enough to even hold them off"

"You know they just want to be with you, Ranma. They both love you in their own way. So does Akane, really."

"And Kodachi?" Ranma smirked.

"I choose not to respond to an obviously stupid question." Nabiki said, smiling to take the sting away.

"And you and Kasumi?"

Nabiki didn't answer a moment, she just looked out the window. "Ranma-kun… You're a great person. I'd be lying if I said I didn't see what attracts all those girls to you. Do I love you? Does Kasumi love you? Those are harder questions. Do I see either of us having a future with you? Things would have to change, but… it wouldn't be a horrible prospect."

"Gee thanks."

Nabiki grinned at him. "Alright, since you're obviously fishing for a compliment. You're a very cute guy. Hell, you're an adorable girl, and whoever you end up with would be stupid not to explore that side of things" She blushed, as did Ranma, "And you've got a sharp mind under that pigtail of yours."

Ranma's blush died and she lowered her head. "You're all very attractive girls. I've always thought so. But… you've all got…. Umm… issues."

"You're not getting away with not explaining that one, Saotome."

She sighed. "This stays between us, right?"

"I'm done charging you, Ranma. I owe you too much. You say it's a secret, it goes with me to my grave."

She smiled at that, "Then maybe your issues aren't so bad anymore. You're beautiful, all you Tendo girls are, But you don't open up easily, and always seem to have an angle. Akane got a huge temper, and a mean right hook, but she's got a beautiful smile. Shampoo… god, she's like something out of a dream… or a hentai magazine," she admitted with a blush "And she's got this spirit that just makes you want to be happy around her. But she's a nut, and her village laws would have me treated like dirt if I came back as a guy. Not to mention the drugs and bombs. Ukyo…. Ucchan is an old friend, and she's very cute, but, she's got her own temper problems, and wants me as just an accessory to her perfect little restaurant life."

"And Kasumi?"

Ranma smiled fondly, "Kasumi's an angel, and I wish I could tell her that without getting the words mixed up. But she's a long way outta my league. She's more like a big sister, or even like another mom to me. I love her so much, but not like that."

Nabiki stared at him, suddenly realizing where a lot of Ranma's problems came from. "Its not just honor to you is it?"

"Not really. I'm so mad at all of them right now, and sometimes I want to just throw them all out on the street, honor be damned, but… then Akane'll smile at me, or Shampoo will just hug me, not the glomp she usually pulls, or Ucchan will just sit and talk with me, and let me tell her what's going on without judging me or trying to reel me in." She leveled a somewhat smoky gaze at Nabiki, "or some other beautiful girl will change the game on me."

Nabiki shivered lightly. She wasn't interested in girls, not like that, but something in Ranma's gaze almost made her wish for a kiss just then. But she knew that may not be in the cards for awhile. "You've got it bad, Saotome. And here I was ready to offer you help to get rid of them."

Ranma snorted. "I've had that figured out for awhile now. Cologne helped me with it, honestly. After Saffron, the Amazons are far too eager to get in my good graces to just get me drugged and married. Once I started becoming more comfortable with my curse, she and I had a talk. She told me she'd be willing to adopt me as a daughter in the eyes of her tribe, making me a full warrior, and as the child of an elder I could be called on for help for the tribe, but didn't have to move to China. She offered to do the ceremony right then, but called me on my hesitating. I asked what would happen if I chose Shampoo and she said that if she adopted me that it wouldn't happen. So we talked about things for a while. Between her and mom, I've gotten more comfortable with things, but the choices have gotten harder. Ucchan would be easier. I'd just get mom to adopt her into our clan, and tell her dad where to stick it."

"I'm confused. Listening to you talk, it sounds like you'd marry any of them, but when we talked on the phone, you sounded ready to kill them."

"I'm tired, Nabiki. Tired of the fights, tired of the hassle, tired of worrying about getting hit if I wanted to spend time getting to know these girls. And to be honest, I'm angry that I can't just spend time with one of you without the others getting jealous, and when they get jealous, people get hurt. I know I'm gonna to get malleted at the very least for you being here, and if Shampoo and Ukyo get wind of it, it'll get worse. I don't dare do anything else, cause that would feel like making a choice. And forgive me for sounding like Kuno-baka for a minute, but… I'd like to date all of you for alittle while, just to see how things go. And not feel bad if I wanted to hug one of you, or kiss you."

"Or fool around?" Nabiki asked with a salacious, (and half-serious, she had to admit to herself) grin.

Ranma took the bait, and fluttered her eyelashes "Oh but Nabiki-chan, if you get pregnant, what would Kasumi say?"

Nabiki faceplanted as Ranma laughed. "Seriously, though, kissing is as far as it would get unless we were seriously dating, and even then… I'd rather be married before I get that far."

"Why?" 'Please don't let me have sounded as disappointed as I feel like I just sounded'

"Because that's a permanent step. You can only have a first time once, and I'd rather it be with the girl I can spend my life with."

"You're a hopeless romantic, Saotome"

"Quite, Tendo, Quite."

They both giggled.

"Alright, Nabiki. Its getting late and we both have an early train to school in the morning. You better get to bed."

"Ok, fine. There had better be coffee when I get up."

"I'll have some ready for you."

"Ranma…."

"Yes Nabiki?"

"Can… umm… dammit…" Nabiki blushed heavily and stammered out, "canihaveagoodnightkiss?"

Ranma blinked. "Come again?"

"Oh… just…" Nabiki took a deep breath, and then grabbed Ranma by her shirt and pulled her into a deep searing kiss. When she released Ranma, they both were red and blushing, but grinning. "Wow.. that was… umm.."

"Yeah…" Ranma froze, "You kissed me while I'm a girl."

"You're a girl half the time, Ranma. It shouldn't matter."

"It does to Akane." She grumbled, and Nabiki felt a stab of jealousy

"Well it shouldn't. And here's a clue. When a girl kisses you, don't bring up your other girls to her right afterwards. Now get to bed." Nabiki was trying and failing to hide the grin on her face as Ranma left the room in a daze. She grabbed her pillow and squealed into it, then started giggling, kicking her feet in the air. For the first time since her mother passed, she felt alive. She had no idea if she would end up with Ranma, but had a feeling that the chase was going to be fun.

Her giddiness lasted until the door to her room slid open, revealing a stern-faced Nodoka Saotome.

"Nabiki, we need to talk."

The two women talked well into the night about Nabiki's feelings for Ranma, and his situation in general. Nabiki kept her promise to not reveal any information that Ranma had told her, which impressed Nodoka. They formalized the agreement to open the Tendo engagement up to all three of the girls, which Nodoka said she would bring up with the fathers, and to Akane. She admitted to be surprised at the kiss, but was glad that her son seemed to be opening up some. They also agreed that it was time that Ranma have a chance to actually date his fiancées, and that they would all need to talk together about rules. Nodoka, as keeper of the clan's honor, would need to officially denounce any further engagements made by Genma as misplaced charity, or just plain old stupid decisions, meaning that only the official ones between the Tendos and the Kounji's would be recognized, and Shampoo's as well. Nabiki went to sleep mentally exhausted, but pleased about how things would be going in the future. Sure, she suddenly found herself in competition for Ranma with four other girls, but honestly she thought it would be fun. And she was ready to live alittle, and maybe get involved in some of the things going on around her, rather than just sitting on the sidelines and taking bets. 'Time for all of us to grow up' she thought to herself, and turned over to get to sleep.

Author's notes: Again, any feedback you would like to provide would be greatly appreciated. A few notes about characterization: First, I have read a great deal of fanfiction for both Sailor Moon, and Ranma, and have seen every episode of SM, though fewer of Ranma. Many of the people in here could be considered out of character, but keep in mind that this is first of all fanfiction and therefore not canon, and secondly, this insanity has been carried on for a great deal of time, and that will change anyone. No ships have been decided yet, and by the end of this story nothing will be decided either. Ranma will be dating all five of his now official fiancées (Akane, Nabiki, Kasumi, Shampoo, and Ukyo) and there may be abit of femmeslash later in the story, hence the M rating.

Next Time: Ranma starts working, the engagements are finalized, and we find out what's happening with Hotaru.

To the reviewer who asked if I could get this done in 5 chapters, the answer is... umm… maybe. 


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**: No animals were harmed in the making of this fanfic. Objects in mirror are closer than they appear. Phenylketonurics: contains no Phenylalanine.

All characters are property of their owners. This chapter contains some language and some innuendo.

Ranma and Nabiki woke early the next morning to catch a train to Furinkan. They didn't say much to each other, choosing instead to blush whenever they caught the other's eye and look away. Nodoka smiled at their antics, seeing for the first time genuine attraction from Ranma towards one of his chosen fiancées. The two ate a quiet breakfast, and then headed to the train station. As they were waiting, Nabiki touched Ranma's hand, catching his attention.

"Ranma-kun… thank you for opening up to me yesterday. And" she blushed abit, "For the kiss"

For once in his life, Ranma said the right thing, at the right time, to a girl. "I should be thanking you, Nabiki-chan. And if you're going to be my fiancée, it was just the first one."

Her answering smile was all the response he needed. They boarded the train and had a whispered conversation about their previous days, and Ranma growled when Nabiki told him about Akane's cruel comments. She shivered at his glare, and wondered just how he would respond when they encountered each other that day.

When Ranma arrived at school, however, he discovered that his mother had been setting up a busy day for him. Nabiki bid him farewell at the gate, and both cooly ignored Akane who they saw coming inside. Ranma was called over by one of the teachers in the hallway, and told to report the registrar's office. Inside, he was greeted by Principal Kuno, who was waving around a sheet of paper, and doing a bizarre hula dance about being rid of his biggest troublemaking keiki. He finally got the nut to calm down, and set about getting permission to work at an apprenticeship for half of the school week. The principal left for other business, and the registrar set up a phone meeting with the head of a juku in Juuban to keep up with Ranma's education. Though when the headmaster found out that Ranma was coming from Furinkan, the suggestion was made that perhaps it should be abit more comprehensive, to allow Ranma to prepare for graduation better. Without being too disloyal to either the school or its principal, the registrar agreed. Ranma spent much of the rest of the day in placement testing, which began with a note from his mother that she was aware he possessed skills in academia that he had been hiding for whatever reason, and that she would be very disappointed if he did not do his best. Ranma did tend to fall asleep in class, usually because of late nights or early morning sparring sessions or attacks, but the previous day had been not only fairly restful, all things considered, but he got a full night sleep, allowing him to focus and reason out the tests put before him. Math was still rough for him, but his travels of the world had given him some language skills that actually served him well. After his last test, which he completed shortly after the last classes were dismissed for the day, he found his mother waiting for him, telling him that she was going to take him to dinner, and that they had some things to discuss. She had set up a meeting that evening that would involve Ranma, the Tendo sisters, Ukyo, Shampoo and Cologne at the Nekohanten to discuss the engagement situation. Mousse was cordially invited to get the hell out for the night, and both the Nekohanten and the Ucchan's posted signs saying they were "closed for a private party." Each of the proprietors felt that the possibility of the night would be worth it.

After being briefed, fussed over, and ordered to dress in his nicest clothes, Ranma sat at the table, facing his now five fiancées: Kasumi, Nabiki, Akane, Ukyo and Shampoo. Each of the girls, except Kasumi and Nabiki, wore a confused look at the inclusion of the two older Tendos, as well as an aura of tension. Cologne looked impacable, though she did direct a soft smile to Ranma when the others were looking elsewhere. Nodoka had a look on her face that Ranma knew quite well. If she were free to do so, she would be waving flags about and singing about grandchildren. Ranma's father sat off to one side, instructed by Nodoka to please keep quet and not disturb the proceedings. Tendo Soun sat next to him, watching over his girls. They all watched as Ranma took a deep breath, obviously mentally preparing himself for something that could potentially be very difficult.

"For over two years now, this insanity has been going unchecked." Ranma began quietly. He was doing his best to speak as clearly as possible, to ensure his point got across. "I have been drugged, beaten, abused, and verbally tormented by all of you but one." The girls seemed to speak at once, angrily denying everything and blaming the others. Nabiki's protests were only for show, though only Ranma knew that, as she had heard much of this. "SHUT UP!" Ranma's battle aura flared up, reminding everyone in the room exactly who had defeated a self-styled Phoenix God. "I will say this, dammit, and you will listen, or so help me you can leave right now and forswear any further engagement with me."

No one moved.

"Thank you. Now then, this is where things stand. As of when the doors were closed, my mother absolved me of any other engagement but yours. Right now, only the girls in this room are being considered my fiancées." Ranma held up a hand, "But I have some things to say first."

Ranma walked over to Kasumi, lifted her chin up, and kissed her gently on the lips. It started as a chaste peck, but it seemed Kasumi was having none of that. She reached her hand up to cup Ranma's face, insistently deepening the kiss. Normally such a show of affection would have caused Ranma to back away quickly, but after the night before, and the amount of feeling he had for Kasumi he just pulled her closer, enjoying the feeling for just a few moments longer. He pulled away hesitantly, and saw a look of not only joy on the elder Tendo's face, but also a glint in her eye that he would never have expected to see from the girl. The other four girls bristled, but a look from both Cologne and Nodoka quelled them. Ranma pulled back completely, and smiled at the eldest Tendo sister. "Kasumi, you're one of the best people I have ever met, and you will make some man very happy some day. You're an angel, and probably the closest thing to a big sister that I've ever had."

"That didn't feel like a sisterly kiss, Ranma-kun," Kasumi said, her voice thick with emotion.

Ranma smiled. "Maybe not. But I don't think I could marry you. Besides, there's a certain doctor who would really like to get together with you."

"Well he should have moved sooner." She said, with the closest thing to a pout any of them had ever seen on her face, and her tone was almost petulant. The others were floored. Was Kasumi really fighting to stay in consideration here? "I…. I don't know if I can just walk away without trying, Ranma-kun." She blinked back some tears, "You're a very special young… person."

Ranma felt himself getting choked up. This was supposed to have been the easy one. "Kasumi… I…" he blew out a breath. "Are you sure?"

Kasumi didn't trust herself to answer, so she just nodded, tears trailing down her face. Ranma just sighed.

"Alright, then. Nabiki, we talked already alittle. Do you want out?"

"No, Ranma-kun." Nabiki touched Ranma's cheek as he came closer, and he lowered his head down to touch his forehead to hers. She, like her sister, reveled in the affection that she had been denied much of her life, and continued in an almost-whiper. "Kasumi and I realized just how good of a person you are, Ranma, and know that things are going to change. Maybe things will work out. Maybe they won't. But we have to try. We have to change with this." The other three girls were getting restless, and all looked murderous at the exchanges of affection they had seen.

Ranma nodded against her, kissed her forehead softly, then spoke. "Alright." Ranma turned to his mother. "Mother…. I formally recognize my potential engagement to these two young women. I ask you to treat them as potential daughters-in-law." Nodoka nodded, and bowed to her son and the two girls, who moved to chairs off to one side. Ranma saw the other three girls ready to speak, and silenced them again with a look.

"You three… you have all hurt me more than I can really say, but still… you are all very special to me. I need to say some things, and you might not like them all, but I need you to listen. Again, if you don't want to, you know where the door is."

The three girls just stared rebelliously back at him. "Alright. Akane, do you remember what I said to you in Jusendo?" Akane blushed and nodded. "Well let me say it to you now. I think I love you. But your temper, and your jealousy, is killing it. It's killing me. 6 months ago, if I was forced to make a choice, you would have won, hands down. But you've been challenging me, and questioning my honor. But still, there's something inside me that thinks that we could have something special. That we could make it work. But you need to get over this jealousy, and stop beating me all the time. Because from this moment forward, I will not take it. Not from you, or from any of the others. You pull that damn mallet out and I will shatter it. You insult me, and I will walk away. You punch me, I will fight back. And if you insult or attack the other girls just for being with me, we are through. Do you understand?"

Akane nodded, mutinously, Ranma sighed, and visibly deflated. Nabiki had a feeling that she knew what was about to be revealed, and worried that Ranma's conditions were about to be tested. "There's something else. And I need you to understand that what I'm about to tell you is something that has bothered me for some time. But my mother and… others… have convinced me that this could just hurt us in the long run."

"What is it, Ranma?" Akane asked, somewhat fearfully.

"Ryoga…" He paused, and then rushed out "Ryoga is P-chan. I knocked him into the spring of drowned piglet and he made me swear on my honor that I wouldn't reveal his curse. I've tried to tell you so many times, but…" He trailed off, realizing that Akane was not, in fact, preparing to kill him or run off and kill Ryoga. Instead, she had a broken look on her face, one that seemed almost fearful "Akane?"

She started crying. "I knew, Ranma. I've known almost the whole time."

"Then.. why?"

"Because I was scared, and jealous. Because I knew he didn't want me to know. I made sure he never saw me undressed, or did anything inappropriate, but…" She sniffled. "I wanted to prove to myself that you cared about me. And I knew that if you kept trying to stop him from being my pet, that you still cared. And he'd never believe that I didn't know about it if I didn't treat him like he thought I would treat any pet" She snorted bitterly, "Honestly, a piglet just happens to show up at our home, wearing Ryoga's bandanna, and when I see one, I almost always see the other soon after. I'm not a Kuno, I can see what's in front of my eyes." She sniffled, and cast her face down, "At least, I thought I could."

"So you used him to make me jealous?"

"Yes."

Ranma stared at her for a long moment, and then started to laugh weakly. "What a pair of children we are. Akane, I need to know, right now, for good. Do you want to try, even knowing that I'll be spending time with any of my other legitimate fiancées?"

"I can't promise I won't get jealous, but… I'm not ready to lose you. So yes. I want to try."

Ranma nodded , then turned to his first and oldest friend. "Ukyo…"

She held up a hand, a sorrowful look already on her face. Hearing her referred to by her name, by someone who always referred to her just as 'Ucchan' was painful, and served to emphasize to her just how upset Ranma was with the way things had gone in the last several months. Taking a deep breath, she said "I think I know what you're going to say, Ranchan. What I've been doing was over the line. But… I've been getting desperate. Shampoo will probably tell you the same thing. Things have been falling apart."

"That doesn't excuse it, Ukyo."

"You just found out Akane has been using another man to make you jealous. Yes what I did was wrong, and dangerous. But no one got permanently hurt, and I promise it won't happen again."

"Then if I offered to release you from the engagement, and have my mother adopt you into our clan…?"

"I'd refuse. At least… for now. I want you, Ranchan. You know that."

"Do you understand what you're asking for? Do you understand that while I'd support you running your own restaurant, I wouldn't want more than a small part in it? I'm apprenticing to Doctor Tofu starting this week. Maybe I'll find a future in it. Can you handle that Ukyo?"

Ukyo nodded, her face down. "I can try, Ranchan… just… just one thing?"

"What is it?"

"Can I please be Ucchan again?" She choked out, tears filling her eyes. Ranma rushed over to her, kneeling down and pulling the crying girl into a hug. It was a testament to just how much he had been changing that he was able to hold her as she cried without freaking out. He whispered, "Of course, Ucchan" into her hair and kissed her head softly as she sat back up, sniffling. Akane, trying desperately to grow up as well, offered her a tissue and pulled the tearful girl into her arms for comfort as Ranma turned to the last of the girls.

"Shan Pu." Ranma said, switching over to Mandarin, causing Cologne and Nodoka to grin, and the others to blink at it. "I want to make sure you understand exactly what I'm asking you."

"Did you know he spoke Chinese?" Akane whispered to Nabiki, who shook her head. Kasumi whispered back "I suspected he did, and a few other languages as well. I think our fiancée may have been hiding some things from us."

Shampoo just grinned, "I always wondered if you actually could understand my native tongue, beloved."

He smiled at her, and answered in japanese for the benefit of those in the room for his response, "One lesson Pop taught me was that it was important to know how to talk to people around you, though I think his vocabulary was limited to 'Can I have some food,' or 'would you like to marry my son," the others laughed, though he ignored an insulted "HEY" from his father. "He also taught me that it was important that no one knew just how much you understood what they were saying to make sure they'd speak more freely of their plans in front of you," Cologne had the decency to look abashed, as did Shampoo. He smirked, then switched back over to Mandarin, with Cologne whispering translation to the interested girls. "Shan Pu… you've been chasing me as a husband for almost a year now. To be honest, it's been kind of fun. But I need to know if you are doing so out of a sense of duty or something more. If it is just your responsibility to your tribe, then you need to know that your great-grandmother has offered to adopt me as her daughter, and make me a full warrior of your tribe."

The girl smiled at that, but shook her head, "Our tribe will be honored to have you either way, beloved, but, somewhere in the chase, I fell in love with you. You've always looked out for me, even when I was being irritating and clingy. It's been fun chasing you, beloved, but I think I'm ready to catch you, if you'll let me."

Ranma just nodded, then said, "Well, in that case, I think I owe you this." He leaned forward to kiss her gently on the lips. Cologne actually cheered, to the amusement of the others, when Ranma whispered, "Wo ai ni, airen" Shampoo, to the absolute amazement of the others, actually blushed cutely, a shy smile on her face. Ranma winked at her, and finished in Japanese, "I'll consider you, just as I will the others. But no more drugs or poison, alright?"

"Shampoo promise."

Ranma looked at the five girls who now held a piece of his future in their hands, and turned to his widely grinning mother, and an equally happy Cologne. "Mother, great-grand-mother, I present to you the only women that I could consider marrying. I am not prepared to make a choice between them, but would ask your blessing to court each one."

"You have my permission, my son. Daughters, I would ask you all to treat each other as sisters, recognizing that no one of you holds a higher position than the other, and that each of you must afford the others her due consideration."

Ranma sighed loudly, the puffed up abit, breaking the tension in the room. "I walked in here with only three fiancées, and suddenly I have five. Maybe I'm just conceited, but I feel pretty proud of myself right now."

Laughter was his only response.

After the laughter had passed, Nodoka cleared her throat, getting the attention of the girls. "I want to thank you all for everything you've done for my son, and I hope that someday soon I can welcome you into our family." The girls shot her beaming smiles. "Now we need to discuss how this is going to work. First, let me reiterate what Ranma has said to you. You five now hold favored positions, and I promise you on MY honor, and the honor of our clan, that there will be no more engagements, no more fiancées, and no more of the insanity that my husband has allowed. But under the current laws of Japan, my son may only marry one of you."  
"Actually, marriages in my village are recognized by China, and by proxy Japan, and polygamy is acceptable and practiced in our culture" Cologne interjected with a smile. The girls all blushed and stammered out objections while Ranma began pounding his head on the table.

"MORE GRANDCHILDREN!!" Nodoka cheered, making all the girls turned even redder, and Ranma's pounding increase.  
"Momma…" Ranma whimpered.

"I'm sorry, my oh so manly son" She responded with a smile. "Anyways, as I was saying, barring a decision otherwise, my son will only be marrying one of you. So I understand that you may feel… competitive… in your affections towards him. But I want to stress this. Ranma is under a great deal of pressure to keep up with his schoolwork now that he has found a job he wants to keep, and it is vital that he gets time to do his homework done. Also, the time he spends in Juuban, he will be spending as my daughter, and-"

"He'll be WHAT?" Genma cried, finally unable to keep his mouth closed any longer. "I won't allow him to act like some girly girl! He's a man amongst men and must act like it."

"Husband, shut up." Nodoka said, watching a red battle aura forming around Ranma.

"I will not!" Genma growled. "I've put up with this medical nonsense because it will help the boy learn to control his ki better, and I'm letting you choose a girl for the boy to marry, but I'll be damned if you ruin all the work I've put into the boy's training by letting him act like some weak sissy girl!"

"Ranma." Ranma growled out, in a very low, dangerous voice. His fiancées backed away quickly, while Cologne merely shook her head at the idiocy of the man before her.

"What?" Genma asked, confused.

"My NAME, is RANMA!" He grabbed a glass of water, and splashed himself, triggering his transformation, "And if I want to spend time as a girl, then I will, YOU STUPID PANDA!" She launched herself at him, her fury sending her arms into amaguriken speed almost unconsciously. The girls rushed to stop him, or intervene somehow, but a katana and a staff stopped them. Cologne shook her head, and Nodoka told them to wait.

Tears streaming down her face, Ranma kicked her father into a wall. He stood up, and turned to face her. "Look at you. First you dress like a girl, and now you're crying! Oh the shame of having a sissy-boy for a son!" He wailed, melodramatically.

"I've had enough." Ranma's aura closed down into her. "My entire life, you have belittled me, cut me down, and used me to feed your own damn stomach. No more. I challenge you, Oyaji, for title of Master of our school. "

"You mean mistress, don't you."

"You don't get it, do you, pop?" Ranma reached back and undid her pigtail. "When I look like this, I'm a girl. When I get hit with hot water, I'm a boy. Deal with it. But you've got a choice. Are we gonna fight, or are you going to yield like the coward you've always been."

Genma's eyes narrowed. "You want a fight, little girl, you've got one." He moved forward, and struck hard, unleashing some of his sealed attacks.

"No!" the girls cried out, seeing Ranma thrown across the room. A low chuckle came from Genma. "Give up now, girl. I'll always win. I may have taught you everything you know, but not everything I know."

Ranma's aura flared again, as she stood. "You're wrong about one thing, father." She crouched, and blue-ish ki claws sprung from her hands. Genma paled, "You haven't taught me everything I know."

"The neko-ken…" Cologne whispered, as Ranma moved forward again, slashing her ki-claws at her father, who barely moved aside in time. Despite that, his gi was ripped across the chest.

"Let's see what you can handle, Oyagi. MOKO TAKABISHA!" From her cupped hand, a ball of ki flew at Genma, who dove to one side, only to be met with a kick to the face. Ranma opened every trick in her arsenal as she pounded her father into submission, and when she was done, the old may lay on the floor of the now wrecked room, bruised, and bleeding.

"I will never submit to you again. By right of combat, I claim my place as master… as MISTRESS of the Saotome School of martial arts." She glanced over at Soun, who had been watching the proceedings silently. He stood slowly, and walked over to her. She drew herself back into a fighting stance, but the older man just shook his head.

"My family owes you a great deal, Ranma-san." He said, bowing, "I'm seeing you grow into the young man… and young woman… I know will someday lead your school into a place of honor in the eyes of history, rather than just the teachings of a pair of thieves." He knelt down, to gather Genma up. "Your father is my closest friend, Ranma-san, in spite of his faults. But I will not stand in your way. You are the true master of your school now, and no one will doubt it. I will make sure you have your license tomorrow." He teared up again, "I can't think of anyone I'd rather have marry one of my daughters."

He turned to his girls, who were watching him with a shocked look on his face. "I have seen all of you children, and that's what you are to us old folks. Just children…." He drifted off a moment, looking down at his old friend, "I have seen you children grow up tonight. And my friend didn't want it to happen. I won't stand in your way." His daughters came up to hug him, and he hugged each in return, then turn to Ranma. "If you were a boy right now, I'd shake your hand, but, considering the young lady I'm looking at…" he didn't need to finish, as the sore and emotionally drained redhead gave him the first hug she could remember giving a man by choice. He smiled at her, and dragged her father from the room.

Silence reigned for a long time after that. Both of the adults helped the girls straightened up the restaurant, Ranma refusing offers of hot water, unable to speak for the moment. Finally, Cologne broke the silence.

"Son-i…" she trailed off, seeing the look on Ranma's face, "Daughter… Don't feel you have to stay a girl just to spite your father."

She shook her head, her hair streaming around her face. Nodoka caught on first, and walked over. "She's not." She lifted Ranma's chin, and looked into the girls eyes, "I know you think boys shouldn't cry, Ranma-chan," She whispered, "But you're not a boy right now." The dam broke, and Nodoka gathered the now weeping redhead into her arms.

"It's been a long night, girls." Cologne said, getting the attention of the five fiancées. "There are plenty of rooms upstairs if you would all like to stay the night. I know Saotome-san is planning to. You are all welcome."

Nabiki looked closely at the ancient amazon, and suddenly smiled, "You're going to win either way here, aren't you?" She asked, a shrewd look on her face.

One that was answered quickly by Cologne. "Of course I am. Either way, I'm getting at least one new amazon for my tribe"

"At least?" Nabiki inquired, and Cologne just smiled wider.

"I can think of at least four others who I'd love to teach as well." Nabiki wasn't sure how to respond to that.

Nodoka got her daughter upstairs, and then came back down, to discover the girls were planning on having something of an impromptu sleepover after Cologne's invitation.

"Ranma will be staying upstairs tonight, girls, but I'd like to finish what I was trying to say earlier." They all gathered around to listen. "She has been under a great deal of stress recently, coming to terms with the permanence of her… condition, and struggling to change the way things have been. She has found something that she really enjoys, working in Juuban, but the school will not let her continue if she doesn't keep her grades up. I'm going to help her as much as I can, but for her sake, I'm recommending she stay as a girl while in Juuban, as she has told me it is easier to keep herself in her cursed form, and is less likely to be hit by hot water than by cold. She will, I'm sure, be a boy as often as possible when she is here in Nerima, but please understand, that you are engaged to both a boy, and a girl. Don't let her gender stand between you spending time together, or doing things that engaged couples should do." The other girls blushed, catching her implications very well.

"Will…" Akane caught herself before her voice could crack in embarrassment. "Will Ranma be alright?"

Nodoka sighed, "My idiot husband has done an admirable job of keeping her spirit broken. She has just begun to see herself as both a boy and a girl and his cruel comments cut right into a sensitive part of her mind. Besides, that duel has been building for quite some time, I am given to understand."

The others nodded, "Yeah, Ranchan's old man is always cutting him down," Ukyo agreed.

"Shampoo think Airen went easy on stupid panda-man."

"Akane think Ramen-girl right. Panda too-too mean," She teased, trying to break the ice, and smiling at the Chinese girl, who stuck her tongue out at Akane.

"Violent tomboy being mean to shampoo! Shampoo hurt now!" Both girls giggled.

"Oh my, you two are so silly," Kasumi said, "I wish you had started out this friendly!"

Cologne smiled at their antics, "I think, that if you girls spend some time together without having to worry about competing for son-in-law's affections, that you will find you all have a great deal in common, and quite a bit to teach each other. But for now, girls, why don't you spend the night? I'm sure we can get you something to wear."

The girls settled down, whispering for a bit about how the day had turned out. And upstairs, Nodoka stroked the hair of her daughter, who was settling down for the night, still abit upset at her treatment at her father's hands.

The following few days Ranma actually spent time studying both the material Tofu gave him about his practice, but also some of his school work as well, to prepare for the juku he would be attending. Soun came through on his word, and delivered Ranma a certificate, pronouncing him master of the Saotome school, with provisional permission to teach the art to other. He sadly told Ranma that his father had disappeared the night before on a "training trip" and that he was not certain when he would be back, but assured Ranma that he was always welcome at the dojo. Ranma just nodded sadly at the news, and headed to school. After drop kicking Kuno, which always made him feel better, he headed inside to his first class. His test results came back, showing that while he was not where he needed to be in most subjects, he would be able to stay on track in school without being held back. He also spent about 2 hours each night strictly in meditation, studying the flows of his ki and how it interacted with himself and the environment. Invariably each day his fiancées would find time to see him, just to see how he was doing, and if there was any help he needed. After a couple days of ducking and expecting arguments, he actually began to enjoy what he considered normal interaction with "his girls." There were a few bout of jealousy, but they were getting better. Knowing that he would be spending a good deal of time as a girl, which would be made easier thanks to Cologne providing him with ways of keeping his curse under control, he spent most of the early part of the week in his male form, barring accidental splashing. And… other incidents.

Such as the one he found himself in on Sunday afternoon. He was practicing in the back yard of his Mother's home when he danger sense pinged at him. It wasn't like someone was about to attack him, just that someone was sneaking up on him. He turned, just in time to catch a stream of water to the face by a water-gun wielding Kasumi. She wasn't carrying a little squirt gun either, she had the type that had a huge reserve tank and could soak someone in moments. Fortunatly, for the moment, it wasn't enough to change him. He turned to a widely grinning Kasumi, about to complain, but couldn't bring himself to after seeing the look of happiness on the girl's face. He took in the girl's white shirt and shorts, and questioned, "What was that for?"

"Just a little training, Ranma-kun." The girl's grinned turned almost naughty, making Ranma gulp. "You get a prize if you catch us." Ranma just smirked, and Kasumi giggled as Ranma dashed over to her and stole the water pistol. She continued grinning at him as he emptied the tank at her.

When he realized what she was, or, rather, was NOT wearing under the now wet shirt, he figured out what his prize was. As he struggled to re-engage his mind, she sashayed over to him, and pressed herself against him for a long and languid kiss. "The other girls are waiting, Ranma-kun," she whispered to him, "And they're all dressed like me." She posed for a moment, inviting him to look, and he heard his mother laughing from the dojo. Kasumi then turned, and walked back into the house, her hips swaying as she did so. In that moment, he knew, with crystal clarity, that this was all his mother's fault. And he would pay her back. Probably with flowers.

But in the meantime, he reloaded his water gun, and went fiancée hunting.

Wednesday morning found Ranma in his girl form, scrubbed with waterproof soap, and dressed in a pair of scrubs provided by the hospital for their "newest nurse" and waiting in Tofu's office for Hotaru to arrive. Ranma initially expected the Doctor to be cool towards him, as he thought Tofu was attracted to Kasumi, but when he learned the real reason for the doctor's strange behavior (an attempted seduction by a fourteen year old girl who came on rather… strongly) he understood why the doctor had such trouble interacting with the young woman. The doctor explained that yes, there was some attraction, but it was very hard for him to resolve the feeling that he was some sort of pervert if he were to get involved with the eldest Tendo, even thought the girl was now of age. Ranma agreed to not bring it up with any of the others, though it would somewhat change the way he thought of Kasumi. When Hotaru came in again, she was again accompanied by the green-haired Setsuna, who shot Ranma a somewhat smug grin, making him wonder what the woman knew. Again, she was overwhelmed by the power the two possessed, but managed to dismiss it quickly. Tofu conducted his usual examinations, Ranma watching carefully to see what she could learn, and then Hotaru was again directed to undress so Ranma could examine her. Putting to use the things she had learned about her own ki flows the week, she was able to better trace the paths around the girl's body, though the added information did not help the situation any.

"Its bad, Doc." Ranma said, when they were alone so Hotaru could dress again. "With the amount she's losing, and how much is left… She's probably only got a few weeks."

"But she seems so healthy." The doctor objected, "Her vitals are great, better than they were last week."

"That's just it, doc. She's gonna keep using her ki normally, the same amount as always, until it just kinda… dries up. There's just something blocking her from getting any more. She'll get real tired, probably get a fever, and… just drift off. She could hang on for awhile, but she'll get real bad, real fast." Tofu's mind drifted to some cancer patients he had encountered, who had much the same thing happen to them. One week they would be fine, the next, they would be wasting away. Perhaps there was something similar going on there. The body would use up all of its energy fighting off infections, until there just wasn't any energy left. It made sense. And it also reaffirmed that Ranma would be able to do great things in this field. Still, the question needed to be asked.

"There's nothing that you can do?"

Ranma stayed quiet for a moment. "There's one thing I can try. I've been trying to examine my own ki, and I think I can give her a pure shot of it. If it works, it may not only refill her pool, but it may restart her ki flows."

"And if it doesn't work?"

Ranma shrugged. "I don't see how it could hurt her, so probably nothing. I'm not going to be putting any emotion into it, so it shouldn't try to attack her or anything. It'll either work, or do nothing. At worst, it may push her back some."

"I'll ask them what they think."

"Should I come with you?"

"No, Ranma. I'll call you in. News like this, well, it's best to deliver it alone."

Ranma sat and paced for what seemed like eternity until the door opened again and Tofu motioned her into the examination room. Hotaru had a haunted look on her face, and her guardian seemed to be in a mild state of shock.

"Ranma-san… not that I doubt your capabilities, but how certain are you of your diagnosis?"

"To be honest, Meiou-san, I've never encountered anything like this before. I've seen plenty of ki flows, from martial artists to housewives, but they all refill themselves. Hotarus ki has gone down since I last saw her, and its not filling itself back up."

"And you think you can help her?"

"I think so. If I give her a jolt of pure ki, it might be enough to push into her paths, and let them accept more again."

"Is there any danger to you?" Hotaru asked, concern in her voice.

"No, Hotaru-chan. I'll probably be tired, but some juice and some rest should get me back into shape fairly quickly."

"Setsuna-mama… I think we should let her try."

Setsuna nodded, and Ranma began concentrating. "Okay Hotaru… this is gonna feel kinda weird." She knew how to push ki, thanks to her exposure to Hinako-sensei, so she had a pretty good idea of where to put her hands on the girl. Once she found the proper points on her chest, she pulled up as much of her own ki as she could, and filtered her emotions out of it through a combination of the soul of ice and her meditation practices, making her hands glow white. She then…. Pushed it, like she was about to throw a ki attack. For just a moment, some sort of blackish-purple energy seemed to block her, but she pushed through it. Hotaru yelped, but didn't seem to be in any pain. Then everything went black.

Ranma awoke to a very concerned pair of amber eyes staring down at her. "Ranma-san, are you alright."

"I'm fine… sorry about that. It took abit more work than I expected." She turned to the side, and regarded a somewhat healthier looking Hotaru. "Well, you look better on the surface. How do you feel?"

"I feel… really good! I haven't felt like this since… umm… well, in a long time!"

Ranma smiled at the exuberant girl, then groaned, and sat up, reaching over to grab a glass of juice next to the table. She drank it quickly, feeling her own ki pools fill as she absorbed the sugars and vitamins. She then turned to face Hotaru, and looked deeply at her ki flows, then grinned broadly. "Well, Hotaru, that worked better than I could have expected. Your ki paths actually look normal now, and you're filling up your ki reserves better than I could have expected."

She grinned at the smile that Hotaru had on her face. "I'll want to keep checking on you for the next couple of weeks, but I think that went very well."

Tofu set their appointment for the following week as usual, and dismissed the women with a smile. Then he turned to Ranma.

"Normally speaking, Ranma, I'd tell you to be careful about raising the hopes of potentially terminal patients, but even I could see the difference in that young girl. You did very well, Ranma. And I think we have a lot we can teach each other."

The rest of the day, Tofu walked Ranma through a typical patient rotation, introducing her to the patients there that day, and then drove her to her juku at Juuban High school. She met Mizuno Ami, the daughter of a friend of Doctor Tofu, and the girl who would be tutoring her. Again, Ranma was struck by that strange feeling of power from the girl, very similar to that she had gotten from Hotaru and Setsuna. She took some time to walk around the area to get to know her new home, before retiring to her mother's home for some study time and rest.

The next two weeks went better than just about any other stretch of time Ranma had ever experienced. He spent some time with each of his fiancées, who, he was now able to freely admit, were all very attractive, a lot of fun, and really good kissers (though he blushed thinking the last part). Ami and Hotaru both were eager for her to meet their friends; a shared group, as it turned out, though between local legends and Ranma's own senses about such things, a suspicion was beginning to work its way into Ranma's mind. Both girls seemed to really enjoy spending time with Ranma, who actually felt abit guilty that he had to keep them in the dark about her curse. But, for the most part, everything was going well. And, just like so many times in his life, when things started going well, something had to go very, very wrong.

Next Chapter, Focus will switch to the Senshi, and what they've been up to since learning of Hotaru's condition. And then things go badly, for several people. Thank you for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoy this story. It is still not planned to be extremely long, but several sequels are planned.

About Kasumi: I doubt this will ever come up in the story, so let me offer an explanation of her actions. She was confronted with the reality of the world, and her mother's death, at a very impressionable age. And then the woman who was brought in to try to take care of her and her sisters tried to force her into a mold that she wanted to fight. She didn't succeed in seducing Tofu, but had something else happen that scared her, and she retreated into herself. She's now got a chance to open up more, and maybe have some fun with life again. As for the others, this story is about growing up, changing, and facing choices. While things are going well for Ranma and co, if you've read any of my other work, you'll know I don't stand for characters staying happy for too long, so there will be some angst at some point, especially when Ranma is forced to choose between honor and duty, or the life he is beginning to enjoy. Hence the title.

PS: Fiancee Hunting may end up as a side story later if I feel like expanding on it.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: (n) A statement made by an author in an attempt to keep from getting sued for using other people's characters in situations they were never intended to be in.**

**  
FANFIC: (n) A story based on a set of canon characters with no actual bearing on canon.**

Meiou Setsuna, aka Sailor Pluto, prided herself on her ability to make the other senshi believe that she was, in fact, all knowing. She carefully cultivated this belief in them, not so much because of any pleasure she derived from it, but because it was necessary for them to think that she had an "in" to future occurrences and plans of the enemies. In all truth, however, Setsuna was not able to see into the future. What she could do, and do very well, was use the Gates of Time to view the past. Because she was effectively immortal, she could take as much time as needed to study motivations, plans, actions, and even possibilities of things that had occurred before. But her knowledge of the future was limited to meetings with her future self, or anyone else sent through the Gates with a message for her. And since she was forced to use a forbidden and potentially suicidal attack during a previous fight, even her knowledge of the distant past was fading. But she made the best of her abilities and ensured that the other Senshi would be able to rely on her when they needed to.

So Hotaru's failing health barely registered to her as a problem. Never in history had illness claimed a Senshi, and she knew from hints dropped by both Small Lady and her future self that the Senshi team was complete in the future as well, with all nine planets represented, among others. So she took her to see her friend Ami's mother, a respected doctor, to see about making little Hotaru's life abit easier. When Reiko suggested that she see a specialist, she agreed, and when he, in turn, wanted to consult someone else, she glibly consented, secure in her knowledge that Hotaru was just fine, and they were all overreacting. Her first encounter with Saotome Ranma was an interesting one, to say the least. She was shocked at how well the girl was able to read both the latent power the two senshi possessed, and the skill the girl demonstrated at reading Hotaru's ki. When she went home, she was quick to teleport herself to the Time Gates and take a few subjective years looking over the highlight of Ranma's life. She came away with a deep sense of respect and even some sympathy for the poor boy/girl, not to mention no small desire to inflict grievous bodily harm upon one Saotome Genma. So when, in their second visit, Ranma expressed concern about Hotaru's ki complications, Setsuna actually listened. And she carefully considered and then accepted Ranma's offer to jump start Hotaru's ki pathways. The resulting lightshow and experience was beyond even Setsuna's long experience, but, in the end, Ranma seemed confident that it would work.

She was shaken out of her musings by her giggling ward, who was dancing in circles in front of her as they left the hospital. Hotaru had a joyous expression on her face, as she exalted in the first feelings of true freedom and health that she had ever experienced. On a purely human level, she was astounded at the change in the girl, and eternally grateful to Ranma for everything he had done for the little girl.

"Setsuna-mama!" The girl called out, "Let's go to the park!"

Setsuna smiled and followed her to a nearby park, where Hotaru immediately climbed onto some playground equipment that normally would tire her out. Setsuna sat down and called the other two outer senshi on her communicator, telling them to meet her there. She had a feeling that they would want to see the miracle that Ranma had done.

When Haruka and Michiru arrived, they were struck silent and watched the girl that they often treated as their daughter play like a normal child. The couple joined the elder senshi of time as they watched her on the playground equipment smiling and playing.

That night, both teams of senshi, inner and outer, met at Setsuna's home for a somewhat calmer meeting than they usually participated in. Rei and Usagi sniped at each other as usual, Usagi devoured more than her share of the snacks Makoto provided, Makoto and Minako spent time discussing cute boys they had seen, and Ami sat and stared at her computer screen for most of it. Though Ami's attention was drawn away when she heard Hotaru mention a familiar name.

"Nurse Ranma was really nice to me today! She's the reason I've got so much more energy!" Hotaru was exclaiming.

"Saotome Ranma?" Ami asked, looking up.

"Yes," Hotaru responded, "Do you know her?"

Ami nodded, "I've been tutoring her some in the juku she's taking."

"What are you impressions of her?" Setsuna asked, in that mysterious tone she loved to irate the others with.

Ami shrugged, "She's very quiet, most of the time, doesn't really like to talk about herself very often. She's obviously missed out on a great deal of her education, but she is picking it up very quickly." She tilted her head, "Honestly, I'm not surprised to hear that she's the one who helped Hotaru. She is very… unusual."

"What do you mean?" Usagi asked, her mind drifting back to other new friends they had encountered. Some good, some not.

"Its hard to explain, honestly. I had this odd feeling of…. Foreboding… when I first encountered her. Like she was a signal of something coming." She shook her head, "I usually don't put much stock in feelings like that," Rei shot her a glare, which she sheepishly looked away from, "But this one made the part of me that's Mercury really nervous. So I had my computer scan her when we were working one day. She's defiantly been touched by magic, but she's not generating it herself. What she does have is a lot of life energy. More than anyone I've ever encountered." She shuddered, "If someone like Beryl had gotten a hold of her… she could have powered the entire Dark Kingdom."

Silence greeted that statement, until Usagi spoke up. "So what exactly happened with Hotaru?" she asked. "I'm not really sure I understand."

Haruka spoke up, "From what Setsuna told us, Ranma-san told Hotaru that she wasn't producing any life energy at all, and when it ran out, she'd just… fade away." The usually very standoffish blonde unconsciously drew the younger girl into a hug with one arm as she spoke. "She said there was something blocking her ability to produce this energy… umm… ki, she said, but she was able to push through it."  
"We've been thinking about it and it may be something left over from her experience with Mistress Nine."

Makoto had a very pensive look on her face the entire time the others had been talking, which Minako noticed. "What is it, Mako-chan?"

The tall girl just looked pensive. "Sorry, its just… I know that name. Saotome Ranma." She sounded it out briefly, then shook her head. "Saotome Ranma is one of the best martial artists in the entire world. I've seen all kind of pictures and stuff. But… Saotome Ranma is a boy. Tall, black hair… and very cute." She sighed like a lovestruck girl, "He looked just like my sempai" She said with hearts in her eyes.

The others rolled their eyes, though Setsuna never stopped smirking.

Rei was the next of the senshi to meet the mysterious Ranma. She was sweeping up the shrine when she felt a presence enter the temple grounds. She rushed to the front, her henshin wand in her hand, when she saw a smiling red-head bowing to the shrine at the gate before entering further. When Rei's grandfather walked out of the temple, she quickly hid her transformation pen, as the girl bowed to her grandfather.

"You honor the temple with your presence, favored one." Her grandfather intoned, causing her to reel back in shock. The girl just shook her head, though she cast an eye at Rei a moment as she did so.

"I'm not all that favored, sir." The girl responded. She bowed, "Saotome Ranma."

"Hino Ichiro," He responded, bowing in return. "I think I can recognize greatness when it approaches." He smirked, "I'm around it often enough with my granddaughter here."

Rei cast him a sharp glare, which he just winked at. "Hino Rei" She said, bowing to the girl. "Welcome to our temple. My friends have spoken highly of you."

Ranma smiled mysteriously, reminding Rei of Setsuna for a moment. "You have some very good friends, Rei-san. But that's not why I came."

"Oh?"

She withdrew a scroll from her sleeve. "Many years ago, my father stole this from your temple. I wanted to return it to you."

Her grandfather cast a critical eye at the girl, tilting his head from one side to another. "Saotome Genma only had a son as I recall. Offered the boy's hand to Rei in fact." He was pleased to see his granddaughter blush and the girl flich. "But I was unwilling to accept. I thank you for the return of my scrolls."

Hotaru, for her part, had the best two weeks of her life, enjoying the freedom that her newfound energy brought. She was out at a mall with Setsuna, looking at some pretty summer dresses, when a call came on their communicators that a monster of some sort was attacking a downtown play park. Ami wasn't certain, but said that it may have been a leftover of some sort, because it read as being fairly close to dark kingdom energy. Mercury and Venus were already on scene, but they needed some stronger firepower to finish the thing off. The two outers transformed, and headed to the scene. Hotaru immediately started to feel off when she transformed, and as they ran she began to feel weaker, but ignored it, concentrating instead on what needed to be done. They arrived just as Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars did, and dispatched the thing in short order. As the dust settled, Hotaru saw Sailor Pluto look over at her and gasp, just as the world went black around her.

On her way to her third week of work, Ranma saw construction crews working on a small stretch of street near the hospital, and heard stories that a monster had appeared and started tearing up the street. It was apparently dispatched by the Sailor Senshi, but it was apparently quite a fight. He had seen reports of the sailor-clad girls fighting, and while he was certain he could take any one of them hand to hand, they possessed magically enhanced stamina and attacks that would wear him down in short order. Not to mention that they rarely fought alone. The residual feeling of magic on the street just added fuel to his suspicions.

He walked into the office, and saw a haggard looking Tofu staring at a file on his desk.

"Doc, are you alright?"

"No, Ranma, I'm not. Hotaru collapsed yesterday afternoon, and didn't wake up until this morning. Her guardian is on her way over right now to have you check her out."

Ranma froze. Over the last few weeks he had gotten to really like the younger girl, spending time with her away from the office at local ice-cream shops, arcades, and generally just learning what it meant to have just friends. Admittedly the looks that her "papa and mama" gave her reminded her uncomfortably of how Mousse used to stare at Shampoo, but the girls were polite to him, and never made her feel unwelcome. So when the girl and her primary guardian arrived, she was quick to examine the girl's ki paths again, after Tofu took her vitals. She frantically ran her scans three different times, trying desperately to keep the panic building in her from showing on her face as she got the same results. One of the lessons Tofu wanted her to first understand about medicine was that it was important to keep your face neutral when running tests, so as not to alarm the patient. That skill was being sorely taxed, so Ranma again pulled the doctor aside while Hotaru was getting dressed again.

"Its gone, doc." Ranma said when she was sure they were alone, tears in her eyes. "All the ki I gave her and most of her own is gone. And whatever it was that was blocking hers is back, but… it's worse than before. I don't think I can break through this one."

Tofu hugged Ranma for a moment, and let Ranma make a quick call to the Nekohanten. A quick conversation in Mandarin followed, but Ranma just shook her head sadly. Tofu nodded and then took her back into the room to speak with the two women.

"The treatment Ranma gave Hotaru several weeks ago… has been compromised." Hotaru and Setsuna shared a startled glance, but there was something else in their eyes… almost a suspicion. "Whatever was blocking your ki has come back, and it's apparently worse than before. Ranma doesn't think she can do anything about this."

"Is there anyone else you can talk to?" Setsuna asked

"No, ma'am." Ranma responded. "I've spoken to my sensei, and she told me that what I've already done is well beyond both her experience, and anything she has ever heard of. I don't think…. I'm sorry."

Hotaru ran over and embraced Ranma. "Its all right, Ranma-chan. You gave me a really good couple of weeks. I've done more, and had more fun these last two weeks than I've had in a long time. I'm grateful for that."

Ranma just hugged her back, crying softly. They were joined in their embrace a moment later by Setsuna, who sniffed slightly but did not seem to join them in their tears.

Ranma was in class the following Monday, when one of the faculty came into the room and called him over.

"Saotome-kun, you had a phone call from your employer. He asked you to call him back immediately."

His heart in his throat, Ranma raced to the office, and dialed the hospital switchboard, and was quickly connected to Doctor Tofu. "Doc! What's going on?"

"Ranma… Hotaru's been admitted to the emergency room with a high fever. She slipped into a coma and her vitals are failing…. She's dying, Ranma. You need to get here as fast as possible."

Ranma didn't know how he made it to Juuban as fast as he did. He splashed himself at a fountain nearby, and ran into the hospital doors, where he was directed to a room by his friends in the reception area. He skidded to a stop outside of the room, thinking he had just seen a bright white flash of light under the door. She opened the door and slipped in, just in time to see the blonde she had been told was named Usagi slip a brooch into her jacket pocket. The room was full of girls Ranma had seen with Hotaru at one time or another, and a young man who stood protectively next to Usagi. All of them were crying. Ranma glanced over at the monitors next to Hotaru's bed, and saw that she had flatlined.

He was too late. Hotaru was dead.

Setsuna was baffled. When Ranma had infused Hotaru with more ki, honestly, Setsuna thought that would be the end of it. She'd looked into it, and never before had any senshi suffered anything like Hotaru did. In fact, never had any senshi in their history died of anything other than either natural causes, or, in the case of the most recent incarnations… and curiously every Sailor Saturn ever awakened, in battle. So she dismissed the danger to Hotaru.

Until the battle, Hotaru had been energetic, and full of life. She laughed, ran, played, and did everything that she hadn't been able to since Mistress Nine. When the youma showed up near the Hospital, the Senshi gathered to take it down. As their adversaries went, it was mostly an easy fight. But Saturn seemed to suddenly become sluggish after a few moments of fighting. And when the youma fell to Sailor Moon's final attack, and the girls detransformed, Hotaru collapsed to the ground.

And now here she was, watching Doctor Tofu pronounce time of death, and seeing Ranma, a girl full of spirit and laughter, barely hold herself up, tears running down her face. Usagi had even tried to revive the girl with the ginzisushou, but it did nothing but, she later discovered, copy the basics of Hotaru's memories.

The senshi didn't know what to do. One of their own had fallen. None of them were prepared to deal with it. Setsuna hugged Ranma tightly, whispering to her that it would be alright somehow, that she didn't blame her, and watched with a broken heart as Tofu lead to sometime-girl out of the room. The other senshi agreed to hold their own memorial back at the shrine at Usagi's request, and they all filed out, except for Setsuna and Usagi, who turned to Setsuna with fire in her eyes.

"Tell me you didn't know about this, Setsuna"

"You know I can't reveal information about the future."

"Don't give me that protecting the timestream shit, Sailor Pluto" a golden cresent flared to life on Usagi's head. "I want you to stand there and tell your queen whether or not you knew that one of MY senshi was about to die from an illness we could have prevented!"

Setsuna didn't even hesitate. Her queen had given an order. "No, Serenity-sama. I had no idea. My knowledge of the future is limited to information I am given by my future self. And I was not informed of this, or even of the attack last night."

"What do you think happened."

"The young redhead, Ranma, that was in here earlier, was called in by Hotaru's doctor to check on some problems she had been having. Ranma said that there was something blocking her ki… her life force. Ranma was able to break the binds, but described the blockage as being a purplish energy. The ki ranma gave to Hotaru is the reason she'd been so active these last few weeks. After she transformed and collapsed, I had Ranma check her again, and the blocks were back, and stronger. Her life force was practically gone. Then she just… faded away."

"Do you think its related to her being a Senshi?"

"I am beginning to."

"Where is Ranma now?"

"She's probably in the hall with Tofu. And we should leave the room, and let the others take care of Hotaru."

She nodded, and the two paid their last respects to the girl who had been such an important part of their life. They found Ranma in the hall, and each hugged her, Setsuna introducing Ranma to Usagi. They asked to speak with her privately, and she agreed.

"Ranma-san… we need to ask you a favor."

"What is it?" Ranma asked, still abit choked up

"I need you to check both of our ki flows for the same type of blockage Hotaru had."

"Why?"

"Just…. Its something I want to check."

Ranma regarded her oddly, then turned to Usagi who shrugged. "All right, I'll do it. Let me get an exam room for us." Ranma went to the duty nurse, who expressed her condolences at Hotaru's loss, and gave them a room for Ranma. She took the two to the room, and asked them both to undress, which they did without question. She then took time to examine each of them, floored at the power rolling off of Usagi. As she examined the blonde, she seemed to pause, and trace a cresent moon on the girl's forehead, then stepped back and looked at the two of them seriously.

"Its not hard for me to put two and two together." She said, and watched Setsuna and Usagi exchange glances. "I haven't been here long, but I think I know who you both are, and who Ho.. Hotaru was. I won't say anything else, but just know that I swear on my honor that I will keep your secrets." She took a breath. "Both of you have an almost infinite amount of ki. More than I have ever seen, and I've encountered someone who called himself a god. Not only are you two not blocked, but you possess a well beyond anything I can imagine." Ranma paused. "I don't know what that means. You two are definitely more than human. But your ki paths are nothing like Hotaru's were. Her's were almost totally opposite of yours."

Usagi seemed confused, but Setsuna seemed to have a stricken look on her face. "I don't know if I want to know what you just figured out. But there you are. I'll let you both get dressed."

"Ranma…" Usagi paused. "You were Hotaru's friend, I don't know if you know that or not. She thought of you as a big sister. I'd hate to loose a member of Hotaru's family. Please come visit us some time."

Ranma nodded, and walked out, practically bumping into a nurse.

"Oh, Ranma-chan, I was just about to come get you. There are some girls downstairs looking for you. They all seem worried."

Ranma smiled abit, wondering how they found her, but glad they did. "Thank you Kimiko-chan. I'm going to go find them."

She headed down the hall to the elevator bank, and went down to the waiting room, where her five fiancées waited for her, worried looks on all of their faces as they saw the heartbreak written all over Ranma's face. Kasumi reached her first, pulling the red-head into a hug, where she broke down crying. The girls all gathered around her, rubbing her back and whispering comforting words to her as she wept.

Finally she pulled herself together, and wiped her eyes. "Thanks girls. I'm sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it, Ranma-chan." Kasumi said, releasing her and kissing her forehead. "We're here for you"

"Do you girls want me to change?"

To the surprise of almost everyone, Akane answered first. "Don't even think about trying to be strong for us, Ranma. We know you express emotion better as a girl, and none of us are going to ask you to change. We're going to take you out for some ice cream, and take care of you while you're hurting."

"What she said, sugar," Ukyo agreed. "We've all been talking about this, and we've put ourselves first for too long. We're here for you."

Ranma smiled weakly, and allowed herself to be hugged by each of the girls, then lead to a nearby ice-cream parlor, where the five proceeded to forget their trouble in a bowl of chocolate icecream.

The mood at the Hikawa Shrine was somber as the last of the remaining Senshi gathered, along with the moon cats and Mamoru. They sat in a circle, and stared at each other for a long moment.

"Setsuna, how much of the moon palaces are still intact?" Usagi asked, sounding serious. Setsuna blinked, then thought about it.

"The main throne room was totally destroyed, but I think that there are a few halls and some meeting rooms still in fairly good shape. Why?"

She looked at the others, and then responded, "Because I think we need to have a serious conversation. There is something that you all need to know, but I need to get some confirmation before I can tell you for certain, and I'd prefer to be assured of total privacy before we talk."

Setsuna nodded, and instructed the girls to gather around, tranform, and teleport to the moon palace. Much of what they found was rubble, but Setsuna lead them to a room with a large table, and several, still comfortable, chairs around it. Upon entering the room, Usagi eyes closed, and she transformed to her Serenity form, then took her place at the head of the table.

"We've lost one of our friends, today. But there is more to it than that. The ginziushou wasn't able to reach her spirit. And I cannot access her sailor crystal. Unless something changes… there isn't going to be another Sailor Saturn."

The girls gasped.

"That's not possible!" Uranus spoke up, "There's ALWAYS been a Sailor Saturn…. Hasn't there?"

They all looked at each other, and Pluto spoke up, hestitantly. "Not… exactly. There was always a Queen of Saturn, and a Princess, but the only time that Sailor Saturn was awakened was when she was needed to Silence a planet."

"She was a weapon?"

"Not exactly. But honestly, that was something hidden even from me. I don't know what the conditions were that would cause Saturn to be awoken, or why she never fully ascended."

"Ascended?"

Setsuna winced. "You are all Senshi, its true, but… you're not completely Senshi yet. You're still mainly your civilian identity, and transform to your Senshi form as needed. There is going to come a point, though, and I don't know when that will be, when that will change. You will be Senshi first, and only. You can take a civilian form, as I do, but it won't really be you. You'll be changed. And practically Immortal. Each of you had ascended in your previous life, which is why you can access your super forms now. But there is another step, the last step, that you can't reach until that point. And when you do… there's no going back."

"Why haven't you told us the before?"

"Because none of you are ready. And honestly, it must be the will of the queen for a senshi to ascend. And I don't think Usagi is ready to take that step with you yet."

"I'm not even sure how," Usagi admitted.

The Senshi spoke about ascensions abit longer, then began to share stories of what they remembered most fondly about Hotaru, well into the night. They returned to Earth, and the shrine, late, but fortunately Rei's grandfather was out of town for the night.

Across Tokyo, another meeting was about to take place.

Ranma had spent the day with her fiancées, watching movies and eating ice cream. It was exactly what she needed after the tragedy of the morning, and she was glad that their relationships had gotten so much better, though a niggling thought was forming in the back of her mind that if things kept going this well, she may not be able to let any of them go. She went to bed as a girl that night, at her mother's house, with a promise made to each of the girls to spend a few hours alone with each of them in the coming week.

Ranma tossed and turned for several hours, until she sat bolt upright in bed after hearing her name called. Standing in front of her bed, was Hotaru, dressed in the costume of one of the Sailor Senshi.

"Hello ranma-chan" Hotaru said gently.

"H…h…. hello hotaru. Umm…."

She giggled, "It's alright, Ranma. Don't be scared of me. I wanted to thank you again for doing what you did for me, and to ask you to meet someone."

"Ok… who?"

"You met Usagi earlier today. She is Sailor Moon. Setsuna-mama is Sailor Pluto. But I think you'd figured out at least Usagi's identity."

"I had a pretty good idea."

"I thought you might. Well Usagi is also a reborn princess, of a kingdom a long time ago."

"Okay…"

"Her mother wants to talk to you."

"Her mother?"

"Her first mother. Queen Serenity of the Silver Millenium"

Ranma shrugged, "Sure, why not."

A bright flash of light filled the room, and woman with long silver hair appeared in front of him, a sad look on her face.

"Hello Ranma."

"Umm… hello your majesty."

"There's no need for that, Ranma. I'm not really a queen anymore. You can just call me Serenity."

"Alright" Ranma was fairly certain she was dreaming at this point.

"Now then, Ranma… I believe I owe you an explanation, as well as an apology. When the powers of Saturn were first created, long before even I was born, it was decided that they were too powerful. Saturn is responsible for the Silence, the ability to completely end life either in a given area, or on an entire planet. One swing of her weapon, and earth itself would be rendered lifeless." Ranma paled, "Exactly. When a senshi ascends fully, they are given total control over their powers, and are able to access them at a moments notice. It was decided… it was decided that a senshi of Saturn would never ascend. When the powers were needed, they would find a young girl, of noble birth, but one with few family connections. They'd give her the henshin wand, and she would transform into Sailor Saturn." The queen bowed her head "It was a death sentence, really. Saturn was a kamikaze, who would go in and silence a world that was beyond redemption."

"That's… that's barbaric! Why would you do something like that?"

"Because, Ranma the power of Saturn is almost god-like. And you've seen what happens to the bearer of godlike powers. They go mad with power, believing themselves to be better than anyone else."

"But then, why give her all that power?"

"What do you mean?"

Ranma thought for a moment. "You create this Senshi, this ultimate weapon, and then cut off her ki, to make sure that one way or another, she doesn't last a long time, am I right?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you need the Silence? Why does there have to be a single person with that ability? Couldn't you just have created her with the ability to fight as any senshi, and… I dunno… only use the Silence as a last resort? Something that she would have to fight to achieve? Like if she was dying or something, and there was no way out?"

Serenity thought for a moment. "I suppose its possible. But she would still be the most powerful of the Senshi, and that is not something bestowed lightly."

The two sat in silence, Ranma having a feeling a question was coming. But to his surprise, the queen just sat there, silently.

"What happens now? Hotaru's dead. And so is Sailor Saturn."

"Unfortunatly, there isn't much to be done. There is no one on earth that I am ready to give that kind of power to… that I would trust with it, honestly. Because in all our history, we'd never seen the result of Saturn NOT using her final attack. I had no idea of just how little time we were giving those girls."

Ranma hesistated, cursed himself, then spoke in a quiet voice. "I could do it."

Serenity smiled. "I've no doubt you could, Ranma. I know the power you held in your hands against Saffron, and you'd be a perfect candidate, but… you're not a girl. And the Senshi's full power has to be wielded by a woman. It wont allow a full transformation otherwise."

For some reason, this bothered Ranma, and he found himself objecting without thinking it through. "But I'm a girl half the time!"

"Ranma… an ascension changes you. You wouldn't just be a girl half the time, you would be a woman, all the time. After some time, you could learn how to manipulate your disguise powers to look like your former self, but only your girl form. Ranma Saotome, man-among-men, would die."

Ranma was silent.

"I'll be honest. The thought crossed my mind. But it would change you. And yes, Sailor Saturn will be needed, and needed soon. There is a great enemy coming, one that the Senshi have never seen the likes of, and it can destroy everything."

"You said there's no one else." Ranma was saddened, realizing the whole of his life may have been leading to this. Basically suicide.

Serenity bowed her head. "I don't know of anyone else. But I can't ask this of you."

The two sat there in silence for a long moment. "You're not really a ghost, are you?"

Serenity shook her head. "No. I'm a…. projection, if you will. I'm no longer on the mortal plane, but I have enough power to travel back to this existence once in awhile, to help where I'm needed. Ranma… I really just came here to apologize to you, and offer an explanation of what happened to Hotaru. But, you're right. There may not be anyone else."

Ranma flinched, tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm going to give you Saturn's henshin wand. In two weeks time, you will feel summoned. I swear by ever kami above I'm going to spend that time looking for someone else. But if you feel that summoning, please help my daughter."

"What… what do I do."

"You'll know when the time comes. And I promise, the changes will be made to that power to make you a full senshi. You won't have the limiters Hotaru had."

"What do I do after that? Where can I go?"

"Pluto will take care of you. Ranma, don't make this decision lightly. I won't think any less of you if you choose not to."

"But if I don't, the world is doomed."

"If you don't, the Senshi have a much harder fight ahead of them. They can still come out victorious." She glided over to kiss Ranma's forehead. "Live your own life, Ranma. This isn't destiny. Its just a choice." She paused, and seemed to be listening to something a long way away, "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get yelled at by my daughter for awhile." The woman disspeared, and Hotaru stepped back out of the shadows.

"Was I just set up?"

"No, Ranma-kun. Not at all. You were offered the choice, which is something none of us had when we were awakened."

"But I have to take it."

"Please don't think of it that way. You CAN take it, but its not a requirement."

Ranma sighed.

"Just think it over. Don't rush into it. Talk to your fiancées, they have an interest here too."

He nodded, and Hotaru faded from view.

The next evening, Ranma arrived at the Nekohanten for his date with Shampoo. Cologne greeted him at the door.

"Hello there, son-in-law. You seem troubled."

"I am abit… can I ask you something?"

"Shampoo is getting herself ready, so we have some time. What can I do for you?"

"SAOTOME YOU ENEMY OF WOMEN! PREPARE TO URK!" Mousse declaration was cut short by a fist to his stomach courtesy of a very pissed off ranma.

"Not now, Mousse. " He grabbed the boys robes and threw him to the side.

"Rough day?" Cologne asked blandly.

"You could say that. Great-grandmother… if you had to die to save the world, would you?"

Cologne paled, "You never ask the easy questions, do you? And I somehow wonder if this isn't just a hypothetical." She considered. "Death isn't that feared by my tribe, but the consequence to those you leave behind is often one we consider. I think you have to decide whether the life you leave behind for the ones you save is worth the cost if you chose not to act."

Shampoo chose that moment to bound downstairs and glomp on Ranma, "AIREN! Shampoo too-too happy to go on date with you!"

Ranma smiled, his somewhat serious mood evaporating. "Ranma think Shampoo too-too pretty. Shampoo want date now?" Cologne laughed as shampoo thumped him on the head.

"Don't tease me, beloved!" Shampoo said in mandarin. "I'm trying to learn your language!"

"I know you are, sweetheart" Ranma responded, "But in the meantime, what you end up sounding like is adorable."

The two left, headed for dinner.

The next two weeks seemed to fly by to Ranma. Each of his fiancées, and family members were asked the same question. What if you had to die to save the world? Each agreed that the cost would be worth it, though the more observant ones realized Ranma wasn't just asking an academic question. As time dragged on, he wondered when the call would come, and if it did, would he answer it.

Friday night found Ranma and all five of his fiancées lounging around at Ukyo's apartment above her restaurant. They all had been having a serious discussion about Ranma's question, though he remained very tight-lipped on where the question was coming from.

"Alright," Nabiki pronounced, "I am not thoroughly sick of this topic. Ranma-kun, we all know you will do the right thing, at the right time, and we all hope that it won't do anything permanent to you. Now we're going to do something fun, because I'm getting depressed."

"Shampoo think we should do some kissing," The Chinese girl said, winking at Ranma. Nabiki, who was dying for a chance to laugh, responded with "Alright" and proceeded to glomp the girl and pull her into a very scorching kiss. The others were laughing until they realized just how involved the two were getting, and the laughter turned somewhat awkward.

Nabiki finally pulled away, flushed and breathing hard. Shampoo wasn't in much better shape, and whispered without thinking "Shampoo think she have busy fingers tonight." The slightly flushed girl suddenly turned beet red as shocked laughter surrounded her. "Shampoo not say that! Was just figment of imaginations!"

"Pervert" Akane muttered fondly.

Ranma just looked around, realizing that if everything really ended, that things had turned out okay. The girls were all friends now. Sure there was alittle jealousy, but it was all good-natured. They spent time together as friends, without Ranma even there, and were teaching each other alittle bit about what they were good at. Akane was getting cooking lessons, Nabiki and Kasumi getting some refreshers in martial arts, and all five were learning as much about each others fighting styles as they could.

And at 3 oclock that morning, Ranma's time ran out. He was tossing and turning in bed, unsettled and not able to sleep, when he suddenly realized there was somewhere he needed to be, something that had to be done.

And then he knew. He was being called. An ornate purple wand, about 6 inches long fell into his hand, an empty opening at the top where he knew a crystal would form. When it did, he realized that he never intended to turn this down. The martial artists duty was to protect the helpless, he knew. And this was the ultimate expression of it. He splashed himself with water from the sink, changing into his shorter form, and pulled out a pad of paper to leave a letter to his girls. Then he pulled out his backpack, and pulled out a series of envelopes, addressed to the important people in his life, that he had been writing, 'just in case.' One last fond look later, and Ranma-chan ducked out into the alley. She looked around, feeling the intensity of the call getting stronger, and raised the wand to the sky, silently bidding her life as she knew it farewell.

"SATURN CRYSTAL POWER…. MAKE – UP!"

Sailor Saturn was reborn. And Ranma Saotome was dead. Power unlike anything she had ever known coursed through Ranma's body, and an instinctive knowledge of how to use it filled her mind. While Ranma was no genius, when it came to tactics, strategy, and the art of war, she had no equal. She processed the power flowing through her, and found several attacks at her fingertips, a shield, and… hmm… this was apparently new, and could be quite interesting to play with. A judicious application of magic later, and the alley was empty.

For just a moment. Then a silver light filled it, and Queen Serenity stood in the alley, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Thank you, Ranma. You've given up so much, I promise we will find a way to make it up to you."

Several miles away, a battle that had been raging was not going well for the Sailor Senshi. The enemy they faced, a construct made from what looked like a car combined with a cannon, had been very resistant to many of their attacks. Its huge energy weapon had dealt them several glancing blows, and both Mercury and Neptune were unconscious, dragged to the side by a bruised Venus. Nothing they were doing seemed good enough to stop the attacks, and they felt themselves loosing, and losing badly. A huge arm swept Sailor Moon to the side with a crack, and the huge cannon bore down to finish her off.

The green strobe of energy pulsed from the cannon, headed straight for Sailor Moon's prone form.

"SILENCE WALL!"

Until a web of purple energy stopped it dead in its tracks. Sure it was cliché, and the monster knew better, but it couldn't help but turn its attention to the shadowed form on a nearby roof.

"I ain't making no damn speech. SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!" A burst of energy from the wicked polearm the figured carried knocked the monster back, and then the figure jumped down into the streetlight.

"Sailor… Saturn?" The senshi cried out, confused by what they were seeing.

The girl wore the uniform of Sailor Saturn, but its darker colors seemed brighter somehow. And instead of the short bob of purple hair, a long red pigtail went down the girls back, with a spike of some kind tied to the end of it. Saturn wasted no time in jumping into battle, wielding the Silence Glaive not as just a magical focus, but as a weapon. And she was good at weapons.

The monster was broken, beaten, and, if it had flesh, it would have been bruised. Saturn, however, was unforgiving. She was vicious, unrelenting, and skilled. But mostly, Saturn was pissed.

"I don't doubt, that whatever sent you is listening right now. So let me give it a message." She swung the glaive again, knocking an arm off the creature. I've given up everything to take you down, and that's just what I'm going to do. Say hello to an ascended senshi, bastard. DEATH REBORN REVOLUTION!"

"NO!" The Senshi cried, but instead of the total destruction they were expecting, a concentrated beam of energy lanced from the girls hand, lancing through the creature that just sat there a moment, then dissolved.

Saturn banished her weapon, then turned to the other Senshi. She helped Sailor Moon stand, then placed a hand on both Neptune and then Mercury, causing each to glow just a moment, then awaken. The Senshi could just watch in silence, each wondering who this girl was, and what her story was.

"I'm sorry we had to meet like this," Saturn said finally breaking the silence. "But to be honest, I wasn't sure if I wanted the job."

"Hotaru?" Uranus whispered, pain in her voice.

Ranma just shook her head, sadly. "No, Sailor Uranus. Hotaru is dead. Even I can't undo that. But what I can do is fight in her name, alongside the rest of you."

"Who are you?"

"Not here. Do you have a meeting place that you usually meet at?"

"You can use my home." Sailor Pluto spoke up.

"How do we know we can trust her?" Jupiter asked, "We don't know who she is."

"She is Sailor Saturn," Sailor moon said, wonder in her voice. "She's…. ascended."

Saturn nodded. "Yes I have. And I'm still learning how to control these powers, so to be honest, I'm not really anyone else right now. But I'd be glad to tell you my story in private."

The Senshi bounded off, where Ranma explained everything that she knew, and had been through.

Back at Ukyo's, Nabiki awoke with a start. She glanced around the room, and realized Ranma was missing. And in her heart, she knew what had happened. She found a note next to a pile of letters, and was about to read it, until she realized that it wouldn't be fair to do so without the other. So she set about waking each of them up, quietly whispering that there was something going on with Ranma, then opened the note and read it aloud.

_To my fiancées_

_Never in a million years would I have dared think that things would end up like they did. You have all been so good to me, and seem to be becoming great friends, and a great team. I don't want you to lose that, but I can't be around while you work it out._

_No that wasn't just an idle question I've been asking. There is something I have to do… something that will change me. I don't know if I'll come back ,but if I do, it wont be for some time, and I may not look like you remember_

_I won't be a guy, that much I'm sure of._

_I can safely say I love you all. I've written longer letters for each of you, and one for mom, for pop, for Ryoga, and for Cologne. Please make sure the right people get them._

_Take care of yourselves, and each other. Live, laugh, and love._

_-Ranma_

**Author's Note**: This was actually going to be the ending point, but suddenly I have a desire to move this forward some more, so the epilogue I have planned will be integrated into further parts of the story. But here we have Ranma's transformation into Sailor Saturn.

Again, this is unbeta'ed, and may be re-written before I go any further. I'll call this the end of arc one. The sequel / next story arc will be called Saturn ½.

Thanks for all the reviews. No planned release date for the next chapter, because up to this point I had everything written out. But hopefully soon.


	5. Chapter 4

Author's Notes:

Well, here's the next chapter. Again, this is submitted without a beta, so please forgive any grammar and spelling issues. I still intend on taking this down to re-write it, though I may finish this arc up first before I do so.

Thanks for all your reviews, and for sticking with me. School has been eating up most of my writing time, and updates to all my stories will be sporadic until I've finished my degree this winter.

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, and I have nothing, so suing me for this will get you nothing. Just a fair warning.

Chapter 4

During the course of battle, it was easy for Ranma to let herself forget the sacrifice that had just been made. Adrenaline, magic and ki pumped through her body as she moved like the wind itself, dealing bladed death with the new weapon that she wielded as Sailor Saturn. But now the battle was over, and as she stood on the roof of Sailor Pluto's apartment, Ranma's world began to crash around her. She had chosen to sacrifice herself, her identity, her true gender, and her fiancées, in exchange for a chance to save the world. She didn't realize that her sacrifice wasn't to die in battle, but to live a changed existence. She saw the other senshi watching her, as they transformed back to their civilian identities. She saw the faces of the girls she had come to know during Hotaru's treatment, and nodded at the guesses she had made.

"Aren't you going to change back?" Venus… Minako asked. Saturn just sighed sadly and shook her head.

"I don't know how" she whispered. She pulled the gloves off her hand, unconsciously banishing them to wherever the silence glaive and her henshin wand were. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Look, can we go somewhere alittle more private to talk?"

The others weren't sure how to respond, still not connecting this new senshi with the girl they had met before, but Setsuna was quick to regain her composure. "Give me just a moment and I'll have a room ready for you downstairs. Haruka, can you show Saturn to the spare bedroom?" The blonde nodded as Setsuna transformed and disappeared.

"Well, come on." Haruka said gruffly. Saturn followed behind, still lost in thought. Usagi hung back to hold the roof door open for her newest senshi, and took the girl's arm.

"I'm Tsukino Usagi! I bet we're gonna be good friends! What's your name."

"It used to be Ranma." Came a sad voice from the door of the spare bedroom. Setsuna stood there with a downcast expression as the others' eyes widened at the realization. "Girls, why don't you go downstairs and grab a snack or just crash in the living room? There are sleeping bags and pillows waiting, and your parents have been given notes that you'd be over here." Setsuna motioned Ranma closer, "Saturn, I'd like to talk to you for awhile, and I have some clothes for you." The others, realizing both that the two outer senshi needed some privacy, as well as feeling the day catch up to them, nodded their assent, murmuring a goodbye to Saturn as they left, Usagi grabbing her into a hug as she went by.

The two were left alone on the floor shortly, Saturn staring woodenly at Setsuna. "Used to be." She snorted, a note of desperation clouding her voice. "Yeah, that sounds right. I used to be Saotome Ranma. I used to be the greatest martial artist of my time." Her voice peaked, almost screaming. "I used to have five fiancées I was in love with and now I'm NOBODY!"

Setsuna didn't respond, just wrapped her arms around Saturn as the girl broke down crying.

"You're not nobody, Saturn. I know you think that there is no going back, but I promise, I will teach you everything I can about the Senshi magics, as fast as I can. It will take time, but you will be able to go back to them. I swear."

Saturn sniffled, and nodded. "Thank you Setsuna-san."

"I've got some clothes in the bedroom for you." She paused and cocked her head for a moment, obviously deciding something. "The girls will be staying the night, and most of the day here, so take some time and settle in, and get some rest. When you wake up, take a bath, and we'll talk at breakfast. Does that sound alright?"

Saturn nodded. "Thank you for your hospitality."

A rare smile graced the face of the normally stoic senshi of time. "You'll learn soon enough, Saturn. The Senshi are like a family." She kissed the top of the girl's head in a motherly fashion. "Get some sleep. If you need it, there is a glass of tea by your bed with alittle something in it to help you sleep."

Saturn watched her turn and entered the bedroom that was to become 'her's'. She expected something frilly and girly, which, while not nearly as bad of a thing as it would have been a few months before, still didn't appeal to her as a great thing to sleep in. Instead, she found a room in muted tones of dark blues and reds, a sensible pair of pajamas laid out on the bed. An instinctive application of will and magic later, and her fuku vanished in a flurry of ribbons, leaving her nude, her much darker and longer red hair unbound and flowing down her back. She pulled on the pajamas, making a mental note to investigate the room further, and crawled into bed. As she moved the pillows to make room, preparing to turn out the light, her hand encountered something soft and furry within the blankets. She pulled it out, and looked into the brown eyes of a stuffed panda bear, a cute but slightly clueless expression pasted on its face. A wry chuckle escaped her lips, as she shut the lights out, and downed the cooling cup of tea. She pulled the blankets over herself, and laid down to sleep, the plush toy never leaving her arms.

Downstairs, the Senshi had been busy setting up the living room for an impromptu sleepover. Each was somewhat surprised to find a sleeping bag in their senshi color, a pillow and set of pajamas next to it, waiting for them next to the sofa. Normally speaking, Haruka and Michiru would have retreated to a private room, both to escape the gossiping younger girls and to have some 'private time' together, but instead the two found a corner of the room to lay in, in sight of the others. Usagi and Rei, by unspoken agreement, had moved to the middle of the living room, Usagi next to wall, Rei close to her. While they waited for Setsuna to come back down, Rei pulled Usagi into her arms, realizing that her princess was hurting both still at the loss of Hotaru as well as realizing the pain that their newest member must be feeling. Minako and Makoto chose to sit to one side, where they whispered quietly about a boy they had seen earlier that day. Ami set up between the other inner senshi, her mind already hard at work puzzling out what she had seen. Setsuna came downstairs a few minutes later, looking more tired than the others had remembered seeing her. Everyone clamored for an explanation.

"Was that really RANMA?"  
"How did she become Sailor Saturn?"  
"Is she going to be ok?"

Setsuna raised her hand, quieting everyone. When she spoke, her voice was firm, but weary. "Every one of you, even me in a sense, became Senshi as an extension of ourselves. We transform, we do our job, and we go home at night, taking our uniforms off. Ran-" she cut herself off and started over. "Saturn can't do that. Until she learns a finer control over her magic than any of us have possessed since the Silver Millennium, Saturn is who she is, and who she will be." She paused to let the others digest this. "I'm not going to tell you her story. That's not my job. But I think you all should be here to hear it. Stay the night tonight. In fact, stay the weekend. I've checked the time gates, and I'm safe to do a little cheating. As far as your parents will know, you spent the night with me because of a study session that ran late, and you'll be home in the morning. In reality, all of us, including Saturn will be leaving tomorrow for a cabin I have outside of Kyoto. We'll spend a week there, and I'll bring you back to tomorrow when we're done." She saw that the others were accepting of this explanation, but a hard look from Usagi told her that she would need to talk to her princess shortly. "Everyone get some sleep. Makoto, I know what you're going to ask, and yes, the pantry is stocked if you want to make breakfast." The taller girl grinned at the puppy dog eyes the others sent her way, and nodded.

"Setsuna." Usagi began, but the older woman cut her off.

"I know, princess. I'll get some tea for us to talk in the kitchen." Setsuna walked out of the room, leaving everyone to give Usagi a curious look.

"Not now, everyone." Usagi said. She squeezed Rei's hand and looked to the others. "Get some sleep. When Luna and Artemis get here in the morning, I'll call Mamoru and have him meet us wherever we are going. Right now I need to talk to Setsuna." Silence was her only response as she walked out.

"When did dumpling-head get so serious?" Haruka asked of the room.

Rei just shook her head sadly. "When she realized that she couldn't always wave a magic wand and make everyone all better. She's growing up."

No-one had a response to that.

"You checked the time gates?" Usagi asked somewhat sarcastically as she accepted the tea offered to her.

Setsuna shrugged. "It sounded easier than, 'I was reviewing Ranma's life when I got a visit and a set of instructions from my future self.'" She responded. "Though I am supposed to ask you for permission…?"  
Usagi looked blankly at her for a moment, then closed her eyes. A wash of white light and power later, and a crescent moon adorned her forehead, though her clothing remained unchanged. "My mother locked your abilities to manipulate time for a reason, Setsuna. Despite your vows, and your sense of responsibilities, you would have tried to change the fate of her kingdom."  
Setsuna nodded, not denying it. "I can unlock them, but there will be a cost to you."

"Ascension?"

"Among other things. Take me to the gates, and I'll show you."

Setsuna nodded, and transformed quickly. She placed a hand on her princess's shoulder and the two vanished, appearing in the mists before the Gates of Time.

Usagi completed her transformation, her hair growing out and her streetclothes replacing themselves with a white gown, a set of soft feathered wings on her back, and a golden tiara sitting just above the crescent moon on her forehead.

"I've spent a lot of time on the moon since Hotaru died." She said. "I've learned a lot from the library computers and training simulations there." Setsuna blinked, not realizing that. "You told us, not that long ago, that Galaxia was the last Great threat we would face before Crystal Tokyo. I assume you did so because that is what you were told, wasn't it?"

"Yes. I've always gotten my information from a future version of myself, or from Small Lady."

"You were lied to." She closed her eyes, and the gates suddenly flashed to a view of the solar system. "I found this, about a week ago, while I was learning how to control my transformations. Something felt… dark. Unclean. So I tried to find out what." The gates again flashed, and just outside Pluto, Setsuna saw, or rather, didn't see, an empty expanse, where there should have been starlight. "I don't know what it is. But it is alive, and more evil than I have ever felt before." She stared at Setsuna. "I got my own message, two days ago. It told me that you would ask for something, and that I would know then conditions when I would need to. I will grant you your ascension, Sailor Pluto, both to help fight this evil, and to help Saturn find peace with herself. I will unbind your lock on your powers and give you back your control of the timestream, but there are two, unbreakable, conditions."

Setsuna, who had been silent listening to her princess speak, could only whisper "What conditions?"

"First, that you will NOT travel to the future unless it is an absolute necessity." Setsuna nodded, expecting that. The same condition had been imposed on her by when she had first received her powers. "The second…" Usagi broke off, pain clouding her voice as she choked out, "You will do nothing that would prevent the death of Tomoe Hotaru."

Setsuna winced. That had been the plan forming in the back of her mind as she had listened. "Your highness…. Why? It would ease our pain, and Ranma's as well. This wasn't his… her destiny."

"Fate is a fickle mistress." Came a voice from the shadows behind them. Both turned to see Queen Serenity approaching. Usagi lifted the side of her skirt and curtsied, head bowed as her mother approached. Setsuna went to a knee. Serenity just laughed. "Rise, both of you, though I see you have been studying, my daughter." Usagi blushed. "No, this was not Ranma-kun's destiny. But it was still meant to be. If Hotaru is resurrected, the powers of Saturn would answer to her, just as if I were to come back, the silver crystal would only work for me. She has moved on to the realm of the dead, and is happy in the health and youth she has there. Ranma is the only one capable of helping win the fight you all face."

Usagi and Setsuna glanced at each other, but Setsuna spoke first. "I promise, my queen."

Serenity shook her head. "Don't make that vow to me. This isn't my kingdom anymore. My daughter is queen now." She smiled at Usagi, and then vanished.

Setsuna turned to Usagi. "I accept your conditions, your majesty."

A bare nod of the head later, and Setsuna screamed as power flowed from the Time Gates into her. Like Ranma, her uniform changed with her appearance, though in her case she appeared to become younger, appearing now to be a teenager, perhaps 18 years old. Usagi watched from the side, observing the ascension of her senshi.

"I'll leave you to reconnect with the gate." Usagi said when the power receded. "I'll be back at the apartment with the others."

Usagi had just finished washing her cup out when a flash of light appeared behind her. She turned to see a teenaged Sailor Pluto standing in front of her, a sheepish look on her face.

"Why are…?"

"Long story. I'll explain in the morning."

Sunlight streamed in the window and woke Saturn from a sound sleep. She stretched, the events of the previous night coming back to haunt her mind. With a sense of resignation, she rose from the bed, glanced in the mirror and then headed to the closet. Suddenly she stopped short, and went back to the mirror. She stared for a long moment at the reflection, taking in the changes, and then stepped away again. She blinked, and went back to the mirror.

"Its going to take some getting used to." Saturn turned to see Setsuna standing in the doorway. She blinked then corrected herself mentally. Sailor Pluto stood in the doorway, looking to be only about as old as she was. "The disguise field is powered by the senshi magic, which means that its pretty much impossible to break. Unfortunatly that means that in senshi form, even YOU won't be able to remember exactly what you look like."

"That's just stupid." Saturn said. "What's the point of a magic disguise that even the person wearing it can't see through."

Pluto shrugged. "When it was designed, it wasn't activated until the senshi was ready to ascend, and knew how to manipulate the magical fields that she would be using. You're kind of a special case." She gestured down to herself. "And now, so am I."

"What happened to you?"  
"I ascended. So we're in the same boat."

Saturn was silent. "How long do you think it will take?"

Pluto thought a moment. "By the end of the week, we should both be able to drop the disguise field enough to be able to walk around normally outside. But restoring our previous appearances will take…" she drifted off. "I dunno. Probably several months."

Saturn sighed, and nodded. "Yeah, that's what Serenity said."

The two were silent for a long moment, then Saturn spoke again. "So what are we gonna do?"

"Well, I was able to get us some ID for our new forms, and some funds to work with. I hope you don't mind being listed as my sister."  
"Nah that's fine, but how'd you do all that already?"

Setsuna smirked. "Something you'll learn about me sis is that with the power to control time, there's little I can't do. By the way, this apartment is now in our name."

"What.." she paused. "What names did you use?"

"I kept Setsuna for me… since Saotome Ranma is listed as male and still living, I couldn't change that record without messing up a chance to use it for you again when we get your magic under your control. So I've listed you as Meiou Ranko… if that's ok?"

The newly christened Ranko thought it over. "Yeah, that's fine. I've used that name before, so I can answer to it. Where are the others?"

"Most of them are sleeping in. Haruka and Michiru… that's Uranus and Neptune" she clarified off of Ranko's questioning look, "They went to the store to get some supplies for us. The inners are all still sleeping except for Makoto (Sailor Jupiter) who's in the kitchen starting breakfast."

"Any of them know any martial arts?" Ranko asked in a hopeful tone.

"Both Haruka and Makoto have some skills, but I've seen you in the time gates, and there's no one here that could really challenge you. Though I hope you'll be able to give us all some training together." Ranko nodded. "As for me… I know some moves. I might be able to give you a run for your money."

As short of a time as 4 weeks before, Ranko would have made some glib and arrogant comment, unsure of how to address something like that. Time with her former fiancées, especially Nabiki, gave her a better way of responding, however. "Bring it on." She said playfully.

_____________________________________________________________

By the time Haruka and Michiru got back, they saw the other senshi crowded at the back window. " 'Ruka-chan, Michi-chan, come check this out!" Minako squealed. The two outers walked quickly to the window and saw a younger Sailor Pluto going one on one with Sailor Saturn. Both moved almost faster than the eyes could see, and they were obviously trying to keep from drawing too much attention to themselves so no magic was being thrown around. Ranko obviously had noticed that they were being watched, as she would grin, wave, and occasionally strike a pose for her audience, which succeeded in little more than pissing off a sweating Setsuna. A quick rabbit punch combo sent Setsuna to the ground, and she was helped up by a smiling Ranko. The two brushed off, and came inside to greet the others.

"That was INCREDIBLE!" Makoto gushed. "I've never seen anyone fight like that before."

"And the little bitch was holding back," Setsuna grumbled under her breath, without real rancor. Ranko just responded by sticking out her tongue. "BIIIII-DAH!", which Setsuna followed up on with a red-eye and a raspberry of her own. They held the poses for a moment, then giggled, and ran up the stairs, headed to the bath, while the others just stared.

"That… was odd." Ami stated dryly.

"Do they remind you of anyone?" Makoto asked sarcastically, her gaze directed at Usagi who was being held in a loose embrace by Rei.

"What?" The two asked at suddenly being the center of attention. The others just smirked and shrugged, except for Haruka who regarded the two curiously.

"You two sure look cozy… something you want to tell us?" She asked with a leer.

"Be nice Haruka," admonished a grinning Michiru. "I'm sure they'll tell us in their own time."

Rei was beet red at this point, trying to stammer out denials, but Usagi refused to be baited. "You both know that Mamoru and I are engaged," she said, holding Rei's hand to prevent the shrine maiden from running away. This response, and the lack of seperation of the two, drew the attention of the remaining senshi.

"And…?" Minako asked, salivating at the chance for gossip.

Usagi just smiled, squeezed Rei's hand, and headed into the kitchen. "You all need to get laid." Came a sarcastic and lilting response over their princess's shoulder.

"WHAT???"

____________________________________

Ranko blinked, and looked down the stairs at the shouted question in 5 voices. She cast an inquisitive glance at Setsuna, who just shrugged. The two had chased each other up stairs, and were getting ready to wash up to start the day after their sparring match. (Which, privately, Setsuna referred to as her time as a human punching bag.)

"Ranko… you were one of the best fighters on the planet BEFORE you ascended. I hope you realize that the power and speed you have now makes this almost completely unfair."

Ranko snorted. "Gotta do what it takes to win. So what's the plan?"

Setsuna shrugged out of her workout clothes, and turned on the tap to fill the washing bucket. Ranko found her eyes drawn to her "sister's" form, and began making comparison's to her fiancée's. "I'm going to get us all up to a cabin I… we have near Kyoto. We'll spend a week there, training and having some fun before trouble starts up again. Then I'll pull us all back in time to this evening, and everyone will go home, except for you and me."

Ranko nodded, then took her turn at scrubbing. "So… we're the outer planets. Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto?" Setsuna nodded. "But… isn't Jupiter considered an outer planet?"

Setsuna snorted. "Yes it is. But Sailor Jupiter was assigned to guard the princess during the final battles when the Silver Millenium fell, so she was reincarnated with the other inner senshi."

Ranko nodded and chewed her bottom lip in thought. "No one's gonna get mad if I make some suggestions, right?"  
"Like what?"

The redhead sighed, as she dumped water over her head. "Ya'll suck as a team." She said bluntly. Setsuna bristled, but Ranko held up a quelling hand. "No, listen. When I came in, you guys were all over the place. No one was really covering anyone, and you were just throwing out attacks at random. And that's the other thing. There is A LOT more to our powers than these huge attacks we throw. You'll probably realize it when you can really take a moment to think, but senshi had to have been more than glorified shock troops, if there was only a few of us ever made."  
Setsuna paused, to think about that for a moment. "You're right… I think. I don't really remember everything, and I never really fought alongside the others before, but there is more to it."

Ranko nodded. "A week ain't gonna cut it, but these girls aren't ready for anything serious yet. And Usagi..." she paused, the thought of the princess bringing a smile to her face. Then she frowned, and examined that feeling closer. "Shit."

"What is it?"  
Ranko blushed, and Setsuna roared with laughter. "You're not in love with her, Ranko-chan."

"How… umm.. huh?"

"We are bound to her, heart, mind and soul. Just like we are to each other. I know you've got strong feelings for her, we all do. I hate to call it programming, but its just the way it is." She lowered her voice. "I know you're going to go back to your girls, Ranko-chan, but I think its only fair to warn you… sex between senshi is like nothing you will EVER experience." She winked at the blushing redhead and eased into the tub for a soak.

Despite her best efforts, Ranko couldn't come up with a response to that, and just sank into the tub next to Setsuna. Embarrassment drove her to change the topic.

"So what do we need to do to drop these disguise fields?"

Setsuna thought about it for awhile, her eyes closed and head tilted back. "I think we've really got about 4 different steps to take. First we have to shut off the disguise field, but still be able to bring it back up when we go into battle. Then we'll need to find a way to mask our senshi powers altogether so we don't stand out." She frowned in thought for a moment. "Once we know what we look like in that form, we'll know what else we need to do to change your appearance back to the way it was."

"What's the last step?"

Setsuna sighed, "If we've done this right, we can transform into our armor and into a civilian form pretty much instantly. The last step would be to try to weave some magic to let you become a guy again." She ran her hands through the redheads long hair. "The first three steps could take months, Ranko-chan. Its not like there are any mages left to teach us. Usagi said there are some training computers left on the moon, but it will still take us time. That last step…It could take years. Maybe decades."

Ranko drew a shuddering breath. "I know, Set-chan. I don't care if I'm stuck as a girl, but I need to be able to see the girls again."

Setsuna nodded, and two quieted down, to relax their worn muscles.

__________________________________________________________

Setsuna lead Ranko downstairs as Makoto was finishing breakfast, and the senshi all sat around the living area, arranged on sofas, chairs, or just on the floor. Ranko took a seat on the sofa, Setsuna next to him. Breakfast was mostly silent, no one really certain how to address Ranko and still unsure how to respond to Usagi's blatant teasing from earlier. All the senshi couldn't help be stare at Ranko, though, who was apparently able to eat at the same speed and volume as their princess.

"Thank you for breakfast," Ranko whispered to Makoto, who bowed and smiled slightly. "I guess you all know who I was before, since I've met you all several times." The senshi nodded, "Since I'm not really the same person yet, I can't really go by Ranma anymore, so Setsuna had me registered as Meiou Ranko"

"How did you become Sailor Saturn, Ranko-chan?" Usagi asked softly

"Hotaru appeared to me the night after… she died." Ranko paused a moment, "She introduced me to Queen Serenity who told me that there's a new enemy coming. She said that a Sailor Saturn was needed, and I offered to take the job. She told me that it would change me, but that I was the only one who could handle the power. So I took it. Last night I felt that you were all in trouble, and transformed after saying goodbye to my fiancées and headed here. My curse was locked, and my appearance was changed when I transformed, which is why I look so much different."

The senshi digested that for a moment, before Ami spoke up, "How are you handling the changes in your appearance?"  
Ranko sighed, "Its not easy. I've been locked as a girl before, once for several weeks, so this isn't totally a new experience, but the disguise field is weird. I'm sure you are all used to not really seeing each other completely in Senshi form, but you're going to find out when you're not looking at me that you won't really remember what I look like. For the people that aren't senshi, they won't even be able to associate me with who I was before."

In a change of subject, Makoto asked her alittle about the martial arts that Ranko had displayed earlier, which lead into a conversation about Ranko's life growing up.

____________________________________________________________

Across Tokyo, five girls were waking up to a world without the young man who had been the center of their life for so long. None had slept well after finding the note from Ranma, nor did reading their personal letters help any. Each was brief, asking only their forgiveness for leaving, and expressing his love to them. The girls compared letters and cried together at the feeling of loss before falling into a fitful sleep. They dressed in silence, and Ukyo lead them downstairs, where she posted a sign that Ucchan's was closed until further notice.

"What are you going to do for money, Ukyo-san?" Kasumi asked, drawing a small grin from the chef in question.

"Please, Kasumi, if you can't call me Ucchan, at least just call me Ukyo." She thought a moment, "I'm not entirely sure. Konatsu disappeared after we started this…. Whatever it is we have going on, so I've been working hard just to run the dinner shifts. Now, it just doesn't seem like there's a point."

"Can we help?" Akane asked, drawing a look from the other girls. She winced, "I know I'm not a great cook," Nabiki snorted and she glared at her a moment, "Okay, I can't cook at all, but I can help out here, cleaning or serving tables or something."

Nabiki nodded along, "You know, I wouldn't mind working here either." She lowered her voice, "I've gotten used to spending time with you girls, and I don't think I want to lose that."

"I could help during the day while you are in school," Kasumi offered.

"Shampoo talk to hibachan, Nekohanten not as busy anymore, maybe we help here also."

Ukyo was sniffling by the time they were finished speaking. "Thanks girls. Who'd have thought that we'd actually be making these offers to each other with our history."

"I've been thinking about that, honestly," Akane offered, "I used to be so mad at all of you, and at Ranma. But after we met with Auntie… Mother Saotome that night, I've spent time talking to her about it. I think we were all jealous, and scared that we'd lose him." Ukyo hugged her and nodded.

"We need to talk about Ranma, girls." Nabiki said quietly. "Does anyone here really think he's…. dead?"

"He's not." Kasumi stated with certainty, drawing curious looks from the others in the room.

"How Kasumi know?" Shampoo asked, and Kasumi blushed alittle.

"I just… I know. Anyone that stays in our house long enough, I get a sense about."

"How accurate is it?" Nabiki asked. Kasumi blushed further, but closed her eyes and seemed to meditate for a moment.

"Father is very sad right now, I think he read the letter from Ranma earlier. Mother Saotome and Uncle Saotome are together in the dojo also, but they haven't realized what's happening yet. Ryoga is at peace right now, so he's probably with Akari-san."

"That's…. pretty amazing, big sister." Akane said, and the others just nodded.

"How do you think I always knew when something was going on?"

Silence reigned in the dining room for a few minutes, until Nabiki spoke up. "How is he?"

"He's very confused, and not sure about what is happening. I can't really get any idea of where he is, or how far away. Its like something is blocking me. But he's alive, and is missing us all."

"Airen never be able to choose." Shampoo said. "He love all us too-too much." She hesitated, then pressed on quickly, "What if we not make Airen choose?"

They all inwardly admitted that the idea had crossed their minds, but didn't react outwardly. "What… what are you asking, sugar?" Ukyo asked slowly.

"Airen love all us. Shampoo think we all could be happy if all us together forever."

"Shampoo-chan… that may be alright for you and Ukyo, but it wouldn't be proper for the three of us." Kasumi said, "We're all sisters."

"I don't think Shampoo means that we'd all be loving.. together. Just that we'd all be with Ranchan. And he'd be with all of us."

Akane sniffled. "If he'd go for it, I wouldn't mind, honestly. I'd rather… I'd rather share him with all of you than lose him." Ukyo pulled her into a hug, and were joined quickly by the others.  
"Are we all ok with this?" Nabiki asked, and the others all nodded slowly. "Then… why don't we stay together and wait for him. We can help Ukyo and Shampoo at their restaurants, and you girls can stay with us at the dojou. We can train together, and see how we handle living together. And when Ranma comes home… we'll be there waiting for him."

It certainly wasn't what any of them had pictured, nor was it necessarily their ideal, but the idea appealed to them all. They would be a family, one that would be complete when their husband came back to them.


	6. Chapter 5

Authors Note:  
Here it is, the elusive Chapter 5. I'm sorry its taken so long, my attention wandered between finishing school, starting my MBA and a few crack fics. This chapter is almost all character development, but I needed to address something that I meant to include in a previous work. As always, nothing you recognize is mine, and you'll be seeing more of this story soon!

Chapter 5

Nabiki sighed and rolled over in bed, her eyes drawn to her clock again. 0230. She'd been up the entire night already, her mind running through the events of the past several weeks. For the first time in her whole life, she had felt happy… complete. Then, in the blink of an eye, everything changed on her, again. But now, looking back, things just didn't seem to add up in her mind. She'd admired Ranma for a long time, admiration mixed with a healthy bit of lust, but that night they kissed the first time, those big blue eyes staring up at her, and it was all she could do not to strip them both down, right there, and right then. She'd watched the same thing happen to her sisters, and then Shampoo and Ukyo. In what seemed like no time at all, the former rivals were now the best of friends, and lovers when the mood struck them.

She let out a ragged breath and ran her hand through her hair. No matter how many times she thought it, it didn't seem… wrong, or malicious, but it was distinctly unusual. She spent a good deal of time kissing and playing with Shampoo, for Kami's sake, but she'd been straight as an arrow before… well, before Ranma blurred gender lines in her mind. Honestly, given everything she'd experience, she'd think it smacked of magic, but there didn't seem to be a downside (She blushed as her mind ran through the upsides). No unhealthy obsession, no debilitating depression when Ranma left (though many tears, she admitted). The five girls seemed to just be in a holding pattern, convinced Ranma would return to them, after doing whatever she had to do. And each had pledged to be there for Ranma when he returned, even if it was only HER that came back.

Finally she gave up sleep as a loss, and when outside, her eyes drawn again to 'her' star. She'd picked it out one night, the night after Ranma left them, and would wish on it whenever she saw it that her lover would come back to them, safe and whole. This night, as she stared at it, for the first time she wondered which star it was. She drew a quick map of the constellations, and its position, then went to her computer and pulled up some star maps. It took her about 5 minutes to learn that she had been wishing on the planet Saturn.

A small giggle escaped her as she reflected on that. It was ironic that she would choose that star (or planet, rather) to focus on, given the suspicion that had been building in her mind. All of Japan had heard of the Sailor Senshi, and one particular one had changed recently. No one could get a direct look at her, though people said that the hair color they remembered was redder rather than purple now, but Sailor Saturn had definitely become more than heavy fire support. She would join battles, mixing things up hand to hand alongside Jupiter and Uranus, and seemed to be more of a battle commander than the Senshi had ever had before. Her mind would never make a direct connection, but a suspicion of who the new Saturn was had implanted itself in her mind, and her heart would swell with pride whenever she would see the Senshi standing victorious, or clench in worry when the Senshi were defeated, which seemed to be happening more and more often recently.

A tear dripped down her cheek as she stared into the sky, and she drew a shuddering breath. A shift in the wind and the squeak of a board drew her attention, and she turned to see the purple-haired girl that had been in her thoughts earlier. Shampoo drew her into her arms, seeing Nabiki's tears, and kissed the girl softly on the head.

"What are you thinking, Nabiki?" Shampoo asked in Mandarin.

Nabiki sighed, "I miss Ranma." She admitted, "And… honestly… I don't know why things changed between us all so fast."

Before Shampoo answered, an older voice came from behind her. "While I admit that I am pleased with the results, I have been wondering the same thing, child."

Nabiki turned in Shampoo's arms and bowed slightly. "Good evening, great grandmother."

Cologne snorted, "Its almost morning, you silly girl." She responded. She studied Nabiki a long time, and then nodded. "I've already check Shampoo's ki and her aura for any sort of compulsion or curses. She is free of them, as are you. It seems that your love for Ranma really is strong enough to overcome everything that you've been through." There was some hesitation in her voice, which Nabiki was quick to call her on.

"But…?" Nabiki prompted, causing Cologne to smile.

"While all five of you show potential in many areas, dear child, you are the cleverest. You're right. I too suspect something, but honestly, the only other things that could have caused this are all very positive indeed."

"Can you tell me?" She asked, relaxing slightly into the silent Shampoo's arms.

Cologne shrugged, "Soul bonds, fated couplings, and destined matches are the main ones. Forces that aren't that much different than the natural order." Her mouth quirked a grin, "Once son-in-law gets back from playing dress-up we might have a better idea."

"Dress-up?" Shampoo asked.

"I think that great-grandmother has a suspicion that I share, but any times we try to say it out loud, we get redirected. I can't tell you, sweetheart, but if you figure it out, you'll understand why we think it funny."

Shampoo huffed, and started pouting until Nabiki gave her a playful tickle.

"Alright girls, I think that its time for you both to get to bed. Shampoo, give your lover a kiss, the others are all fast asleep I'm sure, and you both need to do the same."

Shampoo smiled and complied, kissing Nabiki gently, then whispered, "Wo ai ni" to her, which Nabiki responded in kind. They smiled at each other and Nabiki was shooed off to bed with a swat on the bottom by a giggling Shampoo, who followed her great-grandmother back to their café.

Nabiki eased back in her window and lay back down in bed, sleep coming easier to her after airing her concerns.

Across Tokyo, however, sleep still eluded the weary Sailor Senshi. Usagi had convinced herself that, just like battles past, the arrival of a new team mate would signal the beginning of the end of whatever battle the Senshi were fighting. The opposite seemed to be true. Despite Ranma's training of the girls in fighting, her tactics and leadership on the battlefield, the Senshi felt like they were fighting a losing war. Often, fights would come down to Pluto and Saturn, who both seemed to have endless reserves of power, guarding the retreat of the Senshi as they would regroup to lick their wounds, leaving whatever monster they were fighting to take whatever they had stolen through a gate. In all honesty, the thought of what this current enemy would have done to them had nothing changed scared her enough to haunt her nightmares.

That, possibly, irritated her more than anything else. Unlike past battles, they still had no idea who was controlling these monsters, what they wanted, who they represented, or even what they were called. The monsters would just appear, and sometimes would only stay long enough to engage the Senshi in battles. They'd occasionally steal energy, or some rare artifact, but mostly they seemed to exist just to beat the Senshi down.

Usagi felt a soft hand on her shoulder and smiled at Rei, who had come to sit behind her. They looked over the battered team together. Mamoru was in the hospital, both arms broken in a fight with a monster that took exception to being hit by a rose. Minako and Ami were only bruised and scarred, as they were often at her side. Michiru and Haruka both had scars on their arms, and had, at one time or another, suffered broken bones of their own. Setsuna and Ranko didn't seem to have any outward damage, but both had the look of fighters who knew that things weren't going their way.

Usagi sighed again. She knew what needed to be done… well the final result at least. She would need to ascend, and become Serenity completely. It would unlock her powers to control her crystal, and allow her to grant her team ascension to their full Senshi powers.

At a cost.

During their training trips, each of the girls had hit a wall in their powers, beyond which they knew that they could not tread without being Ascended, and each had been told, in a dream or a vision, what they must give up when that time came. For the other Senshi, it was the same cost as Ranma, the inability to access their civilian forms without mastery over their magic. For her it was different. She would have to give up being Tsukino Usagi… permanently. Lunar Royalty had no civilian identity, no way to cast off the magic of the crystal in order to blend into a crowd. For the others, they could wear their latest incarnations like a costume, but for her, it would end. Beyond that, Sailor Moon would be no more. Her Senshi form, like her civilian identity, would be gone, leaving only Serenity behind. A queen, not a fighter, probably stuck hiding in a tower somewhere.

She sniffled slightly. If she could just make the choice herself, she'd do it, just to get it done. But the Ginzuishou was a harsher master than that. It required her to WANT the crown, not just accept it as a sense of duty. Oh the things it promised her when she ascended sounded glorious, but she still felt unworthy, as if it wasn't really her job to do.

Well… that wasn't true anymore.

Now, it just seemed that she didn't want to leave her friends behind. The pictures that had been painted of the Queen of the Moon was a distant, cold figure. That wasn't who she wanted to be. She'd give up all the magic she had, the power and riches of the Moon Kingdom, not to be normal again (that dream was long gone) but to protect her friends and family, and have the power to fight alongside her Senshi. Her friends.

In a sudden, intense burst of light, she found herself in the Grand Hall of the Silver Millenium, Queen Serenity standing before her.

Before she could even speak, Usagi bowed her head. "I don't want this, Mother." She whispered, "I don't want to be a princess in a castle while my friends go out and fight for me. I'd rather just be Sailor Moon… I'd rather help them." She stiffened, "If I can do that… if you can give me the power to fight along their side… then I'll accept my role."

She felt a hand on her chin, and she looked up into the smiling face of her mother.

"My darling daughter." Queen Serenity whispered, "You'd give it all up for them?"

Usagi nodded, tears pooling in her eyes. "I would. I'd give up being Tsukino Usagi… I'd give up being princess Serenity. I just want to protect them."

Queen Serenity smiled, then kissed her forehead. "There is no greater call of a Queen, then to protect her subjects." She responded, "And you have that instinct in spade."

The white light intensified, and suddenly Usagi felt stronger than she ever had before, connected to her crystal in ways she never imagined.

"The full power of the Silver Millenium is yours." Serenity whispered, "You are truly a queen. Restore our kingdom if you will, protect the earth instead if you would rather. But either way, I could never be more proud of you."

Usagi blinked, then smiled, realizing she had been tested. With just a though, she accessed her powers, her eternal transformation left behind as she became Queen. Her fuku was mostly unchanged, save for the crystal and gold tiara now adorning her head. She hugged her mother, then focused inwards.

When she opened her eyes again, she stared up at the faces of all of her senshi, worry coloring their faces.

Except for two. Ranko and Setsuna were in their fuku, weapons extended, kneeling in front of her.

"Long live Queen Serenity!" They both cried out.


	7. Chapter 6

Author's Note:

I'm back…. Kinda. To all of you who have reviewed and sent me messages, thank you for your kind words. This story has gotten much more positive feedback than I ever expected, and I really have wanted to finish it up. There is still a long way to go as it keeps growing on me.

That's part of the problem, actually. My life is full between work and school so updates may be like this one, short and unedited, rather than long and drawn out. I'm hoping to find a good beta or co-author, which would increase not only the speed of new chapters, but possibly their length. But until then, I'm going to get as much of the basic story as I can written, then will go back and start editing and changing things with at least one other person to make things flow better.

And yes, I suck at dialogue. It's a personal failing that I'm working to rectify. Until then, a short update is better than none, ne?

Chapter 6

"This sucks." Ranko complained, laying across the sofa. She watching Haruka was also on the floor, her head in Michiru's lap, as the Senshi of Neptune played with her lover's hair. For her part, Setsuna was slumped in a chair, an empty bottle of sake next to her.

"You said it." Haruka said. "I am still feeling that last fight."

"Same here." Michiru agreed. "You two are lucky you heal so quickly."

Setsuna regarded her seriously, before turning to her adopted sister. The two seemed to hold a silent conversation, before Setsuna nodded. Ranko excused herself to find a communicator as Setsuna smiled slyly at the other two.

"We may have a solution to that, actually."

Haruka and Michiru looked to each other, before turning back to the Senshi of Pluto, recent defeat making them more than willing to hear her out.

Several weeks earlier, just after Hotaru's death and Ranma's calling as Sailor Saturn, the Senshi were all hopeful that the addition of the new firepower of an ascended Senshi, two when Pluto ascended as well, would be a crucial tool in the upcoming fight.

It was, just not what they expected.

The feeling of defeat that they were getting used to began one Saturday afternoon, at a local park. There had been several monster attacks, each dealt with fairly easily, so they had no reason to think that this would be different.

The monster was, like many others, vaguely feminine in nature, purple skinned, and with a slightly equine face. The inner senshi, who had been in the park, arrived first.

"Public parks are for recreation and relaxation!" Sailor moon cried. "I am the beautiful, sailor suited soldier Sailor moon, and in the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"

"Likewise, the Sailor Senshi!" Cried her friends as they too posed.

Normally, the monsters that they fought were fairly stupid things, constructed for purposes of terror and harvesting. This one was fairly intelligent. And it started laughing.

"Hey!" Sailor Moon cried. "You can't laugh at us! Moon Tiara Action!" She lobbed her tiara, once her most powerful attack and now not much more than a quick way to start a fight, at the thing, which jumped out of the way.

As each of the inner senshi powered their own attacks up, the creature snapped its fingers, and suddenly mounds of earth sprung up around them.

"Golems! Get the Senshi!" It cried, before throwing a bolt of energy at Sailor Moon.

"Silence Wall!" Saturn cried, blocking the attack from the princess, as with blazing magic, the outer senshi joined the fray.

And a fray it was.

Blast of fire, water, electricity and energy danced around the battlefield, soaked up by the earthen golems or dodged by the horse faced monster. Saturn, Jupiter and Uranus finally went in hand to hand, which proved fairly effective at driving their enemies back but didn't defeat them permanently.

Mercury fell first, thrown against a park bench at an odd angle. She cried out, drawing Moon's attention.

"Saturn! Mercury needs help!"

"On it, princess!" Hands glowing purple, Saturn rushed to Mercury's side, healing the girl as best she could. But before she could get back to the fight, another Senshi fell next to her, Jupiter this time.

Then another.

It took about 45 minutes of fighting before the senshi as a team were dismantled. Saturn and Pluto took some damage, but their additional magical strength allowed them to soak up the damage. Unfortunatly, it wasn't enough, as they spent most of their time guarding the others. Finally, enough was enough, and Usagi, wincing from a sprained ankle, yelled for them to fall back.

Saturn and Pluto were the last to leave, and saw the grinning monster snap her fingers again, disintegrating the golems instantly. She saluted the two Senshi jauntily, then stepped into a portal and vanished. She had collected no energy, stolen no artifact… just had systematically torn them apart.

It was a sobering thought.

One that was repeated more often than not, even after Usagi took on her role as Serenity once more. The Senshi fought hard, sometimes winning, sometimes retreating. Fortunatly none of their team suffered serious physical injury, but the mental trauma of defeat after defeat was taking its toll.

Pluto and Saturn worked when they could on their transformations, but getting rest and recovering became the orders of the day.

Which lead back to the Outers sitting around the living room. They were joined in short order by Usagi, and then by Makoto, as Ranma began laying out a new strategy.

The following morning, the three un-ascended inner senshi were at a shopping street, browsing around clothing shops and generally trying to be teenagers the next morning. Rei had been laughing at something Minako had said before she suddenly stiffened.

"We've got trouble." She said suddenly, pulling out her henshin wand.

"Ami, call the others." Minako ordered. Ami nodded, speaking quickly into her communicator.

"Hello, little ssssnacks." Came a serpentine voice. The girls looked up and saw a snake-faced man floating in the air above them. They looked around, seeing that the alley was quickly emptying, and turned back to the monster.

"What do you want?"

"Want?" The creature laughed, "Why must I WANT anything. You little meatbags have nothing that we, or our Baron, want." He smirked, "We're just here to DESTROY YOU! GOLEMS!"

The earth rumbled around them, and the girls were quickly surrounded.

"I think it knows who we are." Ami muttered.

"No kidding." Minako responded, "VENUS CRYSTAL POWER… MAKE UP!"

As the Senshi of Venus began her transformation, the other two transformed quickly as well.

"MARS CRYSTAL POWER…."

"MERCURY CRYSTAL POWER…."

"MAKE UP!" The two girls concluded together, and in short order, three Senshi stood in a triangle facing out. They began to attack as best they could, but as always, they began to take some serious hits…

Until a bright white light vaporized two of the golems from above, and Sailor Moon, in her new white and silver fuku, descended from above on feathered wings, a slight smile on her face.

"Hello girls." She said quietly. "Need a hand?"

Mars couldn't even find the energy to snipe at the girl, just nodded tiredly, cradling her arm. A ball of blackish-purple energy formed next to her, resolving itself in the Senshi of Saturn.

"Let me see your arm." She said, directing a shield around them with her spare hand.

"Two more!" The serpent man cried gleefully. "Then I'll just need more golems!" As more formed, the smile on its face dropped just slightly when Sailor Moon looked up with a devilish grin.

"Damn right you will."

"Dead scream." Came a harsh whisper, and an orb of pink energy slammed into the Snakeman's back. Sailor Pluto stepped up from behind, just as it was tossed forward, just in time to see a pillar of lightning strike the ground in front of it.

Electricity arced from the ground around the feet of the newly appeared Sailor Jupiter, blue cables of lightning coiling up her legs, around her body, and down her arms to become a gleaming blue staff, topped with a lightning bolt that seemed to pulse with electricity.

Jupiter didn't speak, just twirled into action, blasting away at two of the constructs, turning them into a mountain of dirt. At the same time, two other figures appeared in the midst of the fight, one with a gleaming sword, the other with a mirror which seemed to pulse with energy.

For the first time in a long time, the VERY one-sided battle belonged to the Senshi. The three inners could only watch in awe as their princess and the others delivered death and destruction to first the golems, then the snake man himself, turning the hissing creature into a pile of dust.

"That was AWESOME!" Venus squealed. Sailor Moon smiled at her, then turned to the others. "It seems you were right, Sailor Saturn." She said to the grinning red-head.

"Damn straight." Saturn replied.

Sailor moon smirked, then turned to the others. "Girls… get some sleep. Let the outers run patrols for awhile. We've got some time while the enemy regroups."

"Outers?" Ami asked softly. "What about Jupiter?"

"I was always part of the Outer Senshi." Jupiter responded. "I was moved to the Inners when Queen Serenity realized that her daughter was being put in constant danger when Metallia and Beryl began moving."

The other three weren't sure how to respond. Rei seemed to want to comment, but just couldn't find the words. Ami bit her lower lip, but nodded. The three quickly bounded off, leaving the newly organized Outer team standing in the battlefield.

"I don't think they're going to be happy with me." Jupiter muttered. "Especially when the realize what just happened." She made a quick snap of her hands, causing the staff to turn back to electricity, which danced around her clenched fists for a moment before dissipating.

"They'll be ok, Jupiter." Sailor Moon said. "Though their decision will be harder than any of ours, save Ranma."

Saturn shrugged. "It was the right thing to do." She stared off into the distance. "But I miss my… I miss my family still."

Pluto hugged her briefly before they all four watched Sailor Moon transform first into her Serenity form, then into Tsukino Usagi.

"I'm still jealous that comes so easy to you, though." Saturn finished, and Usagi smiled impishly.

"I'm just lucky I had a second form that I could already assume, it taught me what I needed to know."

Jupiter seemed to think of something, then a bright flash of green light changed Sailor Jupiter to her form as Princess Jupiter, a green evening gown replacing her fuku, her sigil flashing on her head. Immediately after, she was again bathed in light and then replaced with Kino Makoto, who had a grin on her face.

"Yatta!" She squealed, twirling. "It worked!" Haruka and Michiru followed suit, their civilian forms replacing their fuku in short order.

"OH COME ON!" Saturn screamed, pouting. "That's just not fair!"

She felt two arms wrap around her waist and felt a whisper in her ear. "I'm sorry." Pluto said, then closed her eyes, pink light surrounding her before first Princess Pluto, then Setsuna Meiou appeared. Setsuna regarded her hands for a moment, before allowing herself to shift to her younger form.

Sailor Saturn alone was the only one fully armored left in the small alley, but she at least banished her armor in place of the form she had adopted recently.

"You're all cheating." Ranko said, a smile fighting against the pout on her face, though real hurt tinged her voice. "Are you still… all there?"

Makoto, in response, raised a fist, which flowed with abit of electricity around it.

"I am… but I feel less powerful than when I first got my henshin wand." She admitted.

"Same here." Haruka said. "Its like… like this is dampening our abilities. I can feel it, and I know that I can break it and assume my true… my senshi form, but there's a wall there."

"Dampening…?" Ranko asked, a hint of an idea forming.

"When I ascended… I felt like I was truly connected to the seas." Michiru whispered. "Now… its more like I'm looking through a glass aquarium. The waters are there, still and waiting for me, but there's a veil in the way."

Ranko nodded, chewing on her bottom lip, her tactical mind working overtime. She felt inside her for her chi, which, though considerably more powerful than anyone else in Japan, was nothing like her magic as Saturn. She wrapped it around her, using her father's sealed Umi-sen-ken technique, and seemed to waver from existence. The other senshi gasped, before she reappeared, a smirk alighting her face. She made an odd gesture, and a wave of purple energy seemed to pass from her head to her toes…

And she went from being a willowy, auburn haired woman, to a cute, busty red-head that anyone in Nerima would know on sight.

"I DID IT!" She squealed. "Oh Kamisama…. I'm back!" She collapsed to her knees, tears of joy running down her face. She was still locked as a girl, she knew, but she had her real face back. She heard a choking noise, and looked up to see Haruka and Michiru staring at her with looks on their faces much like Kuno used to wear when he saw Ranma's female form.

"You… are…" Haruka couldn't finish, just wiped her mouth.

"What she said." Michiru continued.

Ranma-chan squirmed uncomfortably under the intensity of their lewd stared, knowing now completely what the phrase "undressing with their eyes" meant. She turned to Makoto and Setsuna, who were grinning at her.

"You're a hottie, Ranko." Makoto said. "Honestly, if I swung that way…" she blushed and looked away, "well… more like if you were available, I'd be all over you like a rash."

"Alright, you three, enough making Ranma feel uncomfortable. Makoto, we still need to move your belongings to the house, which will be easier since they'll know who you are now. I'm going to use this form to resign from work and pass everything to my younger sister." Setsuna commanded. "Ranma… Go home for awhile. Spend some time with your girls. Just be ready for a call if we need you. And don't forget you are always welcome at our home."

"Thank you." Ranma whispered, before bounding to the rooftops, feeling her ki answer her call again.

It only took her about an hour to reach the Tendou Dojo, where she touched down to find the yard empty. She heard commotion from the dojo and quietly moved around it, only to find her father doing an intricate kata in the middle of the room, her mother sitting in a chair watching.

"Your guard is too high." Ranma said, interrupting his routine. She moved to face him, smirking at his gaping expression.

"C'mon Pops, like you were really rid of me." Despite her words, any listener could hear her voice swelling with emotion.

"I knew-" Genma cut himself off, swallowing thickly. "I knew you'd be back, boy. Nothing keeps a Saotome down!"

"Ranma-chan?" Came a whispered question from her mother. Ranma turned and nodded, and was suddenly caught in a hug. "Oh my son! I was so scared I'd never see you again!"  
"Its daughter, mother." Ranma whispered. "For a long time, I think."

"You're locked?" Genma asked quietly, bluster finally gone from his voice.

Ranma shrugged. "More or less. I'll get unlocked eventually, but till then, this is me." _Most of the time_. Ranma added mentally. More speech was rendered impossible as her mother tightened the hug.

"I'm sorry, Ranma." She whispered.

"I'm not." Ranma responded dismissively. "I'm doing a lot of good, and its better than dying." She made a throwing-away gesture and then asked. "Where are the girls?"  
Genma actually grinned. "They're having a sleepover at the Nekohanten." He said, though his voice sounded leering. Nodoka smacked his arm.

"Genma!"

"What's this about?" Ranma asked.

Nodoka blushed, "A couple of the girls have… well… decided to occupy their time… together… while they wait for you." She seemed uncomfortable with the topic, but Ranma caught the subtle meaning anyway. A few months back, she'd have blushed, but spending almost every day with Haruka made her much more thick-skinned.

"Oh really…. Hey Pop, is it alright if I unseal the Umisenken tonight? For the good of humanity, of course."

"Ranma-chan!"

"Well…" Genma drawled, scratching his chin, a twinkle in his eye as they teased his wife. "If its for the good of humanity…."

"Thanks pop!" A quick gesture, and Ranma faded from sight, making Genma break into laughter. Nodoka tried to keep a smile from forming so she could reprimand her husband, but an ethereal kiss on her cheek broke her resolve and she too broke up laughing.

Ranma's girls were settling in for the night, Akane and Ukyo snuggled together in one corner, Nabiki and Shampoo in the other, with Kasumi between Ukyo and Shampoo, contentedly sipping a cup of tea.

"Ooooooooo…" Came a voice from seemingly nowhere, "I am the ghost of Saotome Ranma….. Sacrifice your panties to me or face the consequences….. oooooooo….."

The girls were looking wildly around the room, their hearts in their eyes as they realized that the teasing tone could only mean one thing.

"Ranchan!" Ukyo squealed. "Where are you?"

"Hey!" Nabiki yelped suddenly. "No groping when I can't see you!"

A disembodied giggle filled the air. "Catch me if you…. YIPE!"

Her arms around a shimmering form in midair, Kasumi smiled at the other girls. "Guess who I caught?"

Ranma released her ki-powered veil and appeared in the elder Tendou's arms. "Should have know." She grumbled, then looked around. "Hey girls! What's up?"

She was quickly tackled from five directions in response.

Seemed like a good place to stop, since I can't seem to write the sappy reunion scene in a way I thought worked. I hope you liked it, more to come soon!


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